Message from Susan Cruse
Susan Cruse
Bryan Meltz
The success of Campaign Emory offers so much to celebrate that it’s difficult to know where to start. This special issue of Emory Magazine makes a good beginning, and there are thousands more stories of generosity than can fit in these pages. They are all compelling, but I find the ones that speak to me the most are the stories of students helped by scholarship gifts.
Consider, for example, a high school student with top grades, an enviable SAT score, and an impressive list of accomplishments. Talking about college possibilities with his parents one evening, he realizes that his top three choices are financially out of reach. Rather than give up, he researches scholarship options and settles on Emory because it offers the best support.
Private philanthropy has opened Emory’s doors for this bright young student, and there are so many more like him. Stories like these are among the reasons I love my job. Every day I share them with alumni and friends who are looking for meaningful ways to use their charitable dollars, and we make connections that have lasting effects.
Campaign Emory has generated enthusiasm and support for scholarships, which continue to be among Emory’s best investment opportunities and greatest priorities. Donors who want to invest in Emory can create new scholarship funds and strengthen existing ones. They can give to honor loved ones, thank favorite professors, or link their family names with Emory.
Alumni and friends who “adopt” scholars or establish scholarship endowments are invited to meet the individual students they help, and many of these meetings create mentoring relationships and friendships. See the story of Pamela Pryor 69C 70G and one of her adopted scholars.
Scholarship recipients are some of Emory’s most active and highest-achieving students. They are campus leaders and academic stars, and often they respond to the generosity that enables them to come here by investing their time and talents in the larger community.
Economics and business major Anton Ouzounov 11OX 13B 13C helps other Emory students improve their financial literacy by writing articles for MINT, a newsletter published by Emory’s Office of Financial Aid.
Psychology major Madelaine Rose Lowery 12OX 14C helped found the Healthy Eagles, which supports Oxford College students in improving their health and making the most of their education.
Dashika Ellis 11OX 13N, whose story appears on page 10, is a first-generation college student whose achievements have inspired other family members to further their education. Her mother now aspires to earn a college degree, and her grandmother plans to pursue a high school equivalency diploma.
Once our scholarship students graduate and establish their careers and families, they often become scholarship donors themselves, and the cycle of success continues (Atlanta attorney John Latham is a good example). This is how a community of philanthropy works. Thank you for being part of ours.
