Lifetime Citizen Portal Access — AI Briefings, Alerts & Unlimited Follows
$30 million gift to Pitt honors college to endow scholarships; dean outlines expansion and national scholarship plan
Loading...
Summary
Dean Nicola Foote told trustees the David C. Frederick Honors College has expanded rapidly and that Michael Reese’s $30 million gift will endow Chancellor’s Scholarships and fund a national recruitment and scholar program aimed at increasing national scholarship winners.
Dean Nicola Foote told the University of Pittsburgh Board of Trustees on Dec. 14 that the David C. Frederick Honors College has grown rapidly and that a $30 million gift from alumnus Michael Reese will be used to endow Chancellor’s Scholarships and bolster a student awards plan.
In an overview the dean said the honors college has experienced roughly 600% growth since 2018 to about 3,500 students, while remaining selective: the college received more than 10,000 applications for 700 seats in the incoming cohort. Foote said regional expansion is underway — Frederick at Greensburg launched in 2024 and grew about 390% in its first year — and retention and post‑graduation placement metrics remain high.
The Reese $30 million gift will endow the Chancellor’s Scholarship “in perpetuity,” Foote said, expand the number of Chancellor’s Scholars and create the Reese Chancellor Scholar experience. Elements described by Foote include a pre‑semester Oxford experience, seminars and leadership training, guaranteed research funding, enhanced community engagement opportunities and additional recruitment and support staff to help students compete for national awards such as Rhodes, Truman and Marshall scholarships.
Foote said the awards plan is a cross‑university effort with faculty liaisons for every undergraduate major and proactive recruitment earlier in students’ academic careers; the program will also bring finalists together to prepare applications and meet potential mentors.
The dean highlighted other research and recognition items tied to the honors college and university: a potential up to $41 million ARPA‑H award to Pitt’s Human Engineering Research Laboratories for assistive robotics work; multiple faculty elected to the National Academy of Medicine; and athletics and student success metrics that underscore the university’s broader profile.
Trustees responded with praise and questions. Trustee Marley Myers emphasized the honors college’s inclusion of low‑income and first‑generation students and said the awards focus is not elitist. Trustee Berrien asked whether alumnus Daniel (Daniel Almanio referenced) would participate in the Oxford collaboration; Foote confirmed his involvement and outlined a reciprocal faculty‑student exchange with Oxford. Trustee David C. Frederick thanked Dean Foote and Michael Reese, calling the gift transformative for the program.
The presentation concluded with the dean’s note that she will return in February with more detailed plans on the student awards initiative.
