Pennsylvania State University has made a $10 million commitment to scholarships that will support diversity across the institution. The funds will primarily be used to match new scholarships created by the university’s alumni and friends with gifts of $25,000 or more.
Eric J. BarronThe initiative is called the Educational Equity Matching Program and the scholarships will “enhance our ability to recruit and retain students whose gender, race, ethnic, cultural, and/or national background contribute to the diversity of the student body,” the university said in a statement.
The university has also made a $50,000 commitment to the George Floyd Memorial Scholarship in Educational Equity. It has committed an additional $50,000 to the Osaze Olufemi Osagie Memorial Scholarship for Educational Equity, created last year to honor a former Penn State student who died in a March 2019 police-involved shooting.
“I am proud that our University is rising to the challenge and the opportunity presented by this historical moment, when we are all reflecting on our nation’s past and path forward,” said Penn State president Eric J. Barron. “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.
