Newswise — Two years after committing $50 million to create a critical mass of extraordinary university-wide professorships at Tulane University, the Weatherhead Foundation has pledged another $50 million to help Tulane attract more students whose academic achievements are matched only by their passion for community service.
The Weatherhead Scholars Program will be the first program of its kind in the country sponsored by a single donor with the vision of advancing the overall reputation and community engagement impact of the entire Tulane University community. Weatherhead Scholars will be among the world's most academically qualified and will also be dedicated to building a better world through public service.
Participants in the program will receive scholarships to help cover the costs of attending Tulane, including tuition, fees, books, supplies, room, board and personal expenses. They will also enroll in a curriculum that is focused on community engagement and transforms classroom knowledge into community action. It is expected that the first Weatherhead Scholars will enroll at Tulane by 2013, but the pledge will be given in incremental payments over a period of time in order to keep Tulane’s community engagement mission thriving for years to come.
"By attracting a talented corps of undergraduate leaders who embrace Tulane's public service mission, we can foster the next generation of citizens who recognize that material success is meaningless without the human wealth that comes from joyous interaction with other people," said Albert J. Weatherhead III, president of the Weatherhead Foundation.
Weatherhead and his wife, Celia, a graduate of Tulane's Newcomb College and a member of the Board of Tulane, oversee the Weatherhead Foundation, which has supported higher education for decades. Before arriving in New Orleans, Tulane President Scott Cowen was dean and Albert J. Weatherhead III Professor of Management at the Weatherhead School of Management at Case Western Reserve University.
"This generous pledge greatly enhances the reach and impact of the new Tulane," Cowen said. "Today's Tulane student brings classroom lessons to life by finding innovative solutions to the most pressing needs of our time."
The Weatherhead Scholars Program is a central part of the recently launched Tulane Empowers campaign, which seeks to provide Tulane students, faculty and staff with the knowledge, tools and desire to heal social ills in New Orleans and throughout the world.
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