Penn State Commits $10 Million in Matching Funds for Diversity Scholarships

Penn State has made a $10 million commitment to scholarships that will support diversity across the institution, President Eric Barron announced during a virtual town hall Monday.

The initiative, known as the Educational Equity Matching Program, is inspired in part by North Central University President Scott Hagan’s challenge for other institutions to create scholarships in George Floyd’s name.

Penn State has also endowed $50,000 to establish the George Floyd Memorial Scholarship in Educational Equity — the largest university to date to create scholarship in Floyd’s name — and committed an additional $50,000 to the Osaze Olufemi Osagie Memorial Scholarship for Educational Equity.

The $10 million commitment will primarily be used to match new scholarships created by donors with gifts of $25,000 or more that “enhance [Penn State’s] ability to recruit and retain students whose gender, race, ethnic, cultural, and/or national background contribute to the diversity of the student body.”

“The creation of the Educational Equity Matching Program is only one step on our journey to greater equity across our institution and our country, but it represents a promise to our students that we will help them to build a better future,” Barron said. “I hope that Penn State’s alumni and friends will join us in that promise and become our partners in supporting the ambitions of students who can change our University and the world.”

The program offers two different matching levels, which both require $25,000 minimum to endow scholarships that will exist in perpetuity and provide awards to students out of annual income. Barron said scholarships awarded by the Office of Educational Equity give Penn State the greatest flexibility in meeting student financial Gifts that qualify include scholarships that expand the Bunton-Waller Program and Millennium Scholars Program.

Donors who want to contribute to any of these scholarships can donate here. Additionally, more information about the scholarship funds can be found here.