Donors

Donations from alumni, parents, students and friends of the College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences support all facets of our educational and research work. Your generosity allows us to develop and enrich our offerings across the college and graduate school, providing opportunities for learning and engagement in our classrooms and beyond—including in internships, research projects, and co-curricular activities—ensuring that today’s students can explore their interest, pursue their passions, and prepare for a successful future. 

Your support helps advance high-priority initiatives such as:

• Experiential learning opportunities, including internships, fieldwork, travel, and professional development opportunities that help students take arts and sciences into action.
• Scholarships that make BU accessible to all qualified students and enable us to compete for talented students from many backgrounds who enrich our CAS community in the classroom and beyond.
• Research that enables us to tackle an extraordinary range of global challenges, often through novel interdisciplinary collaborations within initiatives like the BU Center for the Humanities, the Center for Innovation in Social Science, the new Center for Computing & Data Sciences.

Why I Give

Lisa Green (CAS’03)

Mitchell Green Endowment for Humanities Faculty

“Art is for everyone, and I think it’s really important to educate people about art so they feel knowledgeable, informed, and opinionated about it…. Art has had such a prolific, long-standing effect on my life…. It would be amazing to allow that to happen to someone else.”

Julie P. Gordon (CAS’63)

Julie Peyton Gordon Scholarship Fund

“I decided to fund a scholarship after reading about another BU alumna who had established one. I wanted to create something meaningful for women who transferred to BU and who, perhaps, like me, felt a little lost. I came to BU after spending a year at another college and a year saving money. I worked on campus and during the summers. That, plus a small merit scholarship and a federal loan, enabled me to put myself through school. I wanted to make it possible for others to realize their potential. I’ve received a few letters from students who have been helped by my scholarship. That has made the scholarship worth much more than its monetary value.”

Evan S. Hirsch, Esq. (CAS ’03)

Experiential Learning Donor

“I give back because BU helped shape me into the person I am today.  My experience at BU allowed me to interact with people from all over the country and all over the world.  These interactions created a familiarity and comfort level which I have benefitted from in my career as a business and real estate lawyer working with many people from different places and backgrounds… I give back to help other students similarly forge their own identity and hopefully enter the adult/working world as a productive member of society with diverse and interesting experiences.”

Harold Pskowski (CAS’71, LAW’84)

Pskowski Endowed Faculty Research Fund

“I’m at that point in my life where I’m starting to think about what’s been important to me, and education was critical in terms of the direction I went. The financial aid given to me by BU was very important. I could not have gone to college without that. For this faculty fund, the inspiration was my teachers—the quality of the teaching, their engagement. They created a lifelong interest for me in literature and in the fine arts. Going to BU and being exposed to that can make such a difference in broadening your intellectual horizons and making you realize that there are a lot more things out there you could do. It has opened the world to me—and that’s the purpose of a good education.”

Jane Eva Baxter (CAS ’93) 

Archaeology Program Donor

“I give back because I believe in the power of a high-quality undergraduate education delivered by dedicated, caring, and engaged faculty members. As an undergraduate at Boston University, I received an excellent education in the classroom and benefited from faculty-led programs that provided me with opportunities to learn experientially in the world beyond BU. …. My time at BU was foundational in building a lifelong career as an archaeologist and professor of anthropology, and my experiences at BU were a model for the kind of educator I wanted to become. Undergraduates can do amazing things if you provide them with the right resources and believe in them. I want to help provide those resources for BU undergrads to support and honor the incredible faculty members who gave so much to me, and made my career possible.”

Mamta Rodrigues (CAS’95)

Economics Department Discretionary Fund for Women’s Economic Clubs

“What inspires me is helping women. Growing up, there was this perception that women didn’t help each other out, and I didn’t feel that I had role models. It still astounds me the number of women who second-guess themselves or feel that working hard is all that it takes. Now, I’m in the position to change that. I hope my gift amplifies an opportunity for us to do more and place attention on women in economics, and I’ve raised my hand to say, ‘How can I help young women in college, not only as a mentor, but also with the network that I have?’ I want to be there for other women.”

Keri P. Mattox (CAS’98)

Giving Day Challenge Donor

“I give to Boston University and the College of Arts & Sciences because my BU education has served as the foundation of a fulfilling – and adventure-filled – career. The professors I met, the connections I made and all that I learned at BU set me up for success…and I am deeply committed to giving that experience to the next generation of Terriers.”

2023–2024 Giving Highlights

$1 million gift to the humanities faculty increases access to the study of art

Lisa Green (CAS’03) is passionate about art. But she isn’t an artist.

“I’m not artistic in any sense,” says Green, a private equity leader based in Santa Barbara, California. “I can’t create art and I don’t think in an artsy way. But I’ve always loved art, and always had an appreciation for it.”

It’s a testament to one of Lisa’s fundamental beliefs: “Art is for everyone,” she says. “And I
think it’s really important to educate people about art so they feel knowledgeable, informed,
and opinionated about it.”

Those values are the impetus behind Lisa and her husband Mitchell’s generous gift to
the BU College of Arts & Sciences. The couple recently pledged $1 million to create the Lisa
and Mitchell Green Endowment for Humanities Faculty, which will benefit BU’s humanities
faculty, especially those teaching in the History of Art & Architecture program. With this gift,
the Greens hope to increase access to the study of art at BU so more students can appreciate it.
“Art has had such a prolific, long-standing effect on my life,” says Lisa. “It would be amazing
to allow that to happen to someone else.”

Read more

Surprise Gift to History of Art & Architecture Supports Graduate Student Studies

The Boston University Department of History of Art & Architecture (HAA) announced the creation of the Annual Fred Kleiner Graduate Research & Travel Endowment after receiving a gift of over $100,000 during Giving Day from beloved Professor Emeritus Fred Kleiner.

The fund will enable the department to grant an annual award of $5,000 to support the research and travel of an advanced HAA graduate student, Cynthia Becker, chair of the history of art & architecture, said. Kleiner envisions additional gifts to provide funding for more students each year.

“I want to make it more attractive for people to enter the field of art history,” Kleiner said. “Humanities teaching jobs are really hard to get. I think college teaching is the best profession in the world, but students will only devote five to eight years of graduate study leading to a PhD if they are fully funded and don’t have to take on debt.”

Read more

American & New England Studies receives generous gift

Arts & Sciences has received a gift from an anonymous donor to set up a new endowment fund for the American & New England Studies Program.

The American & New England Studies Program Endowment Fund will provide support for the academic and professional development of PhD students, from recruitment until graduation, including research and conference travel, as well as public-facing work in the humanities.

“I am thrilled about this anonymous gift, which establishes a new endowment to support the American & New England Studies Program,” said Joseph Rezek, associate professor of English and Director of American & New England Studies. “The gift is a great testament to the prestige and impact of our PhD Program.”

Read more

Psalm 103 Foundation gift empowers students to explore the social sciences

The CAS Writing Program’s Writing in the Disciplines and Center for Innovation in Social Science are launching a pilot Social Science Summer Writing Internship Program to provide hands-on writing experience and weekly seminars for undergraduates eager to hone their skills in social science writing, thanks to a gift from the Psalm 103 Foundation, run Arts & Sciences Dean’s Advisory Board member Jennifer Simpson (CAS’ 00).

“Writing is one of the most important skills students need to succeed, and a program dedicated to honing their writing skills in the social sciences is a ‘win-win’ for students and BU’s social science research institutes,” said Deborah Carr, Arts & Sciences distinguished professor of sociology and director of the Center for Innovation in Social Sciences. “The student interns have the opportunity to interview social science faculty and students and illuminate their research, while the social science institutes benefit from having talented students communicate their affiliates’ work. We are eager to grow the program even more in the coming years.”

Read more

Gifts of Impact 2023–2024

Lisa & Mitchell Green Endowment for Humanities Faculty
Tapper Charitable Foundation Endowment for Advancing Jewish History Fund
Luis O. Ruzo Endowed Scholarship Fund
Demir Sabanci Humanities Endowment
Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation

New Donors 2023–2024

Fariborz Naeymi-Rad and Theresa A. Kepic
Albert M. Tapper (Questrom’64) and Elizabeth A. Tapper
Kevin Wells
Alexander Classen and Alexandra S. Classen
Diana Uddo-Kaniuga
Norma Alvarez
Amy P. Neu (CAS’96)
Dorothy K. Pak
William L. Pak, Jr.
Fouad S. Chalfoun and Bianca M. Chalfoun
Alexander Z. Aguila (CAS’96) and Kari K. Hetcher-Aguila (CAS’95)
Margaret Keane (CAS’81)
Francesca R. Ross (CGS’22, GRS’24, CAS’24)
Asli T. Aksoy (CAS’99) and Talip A. Aksoy
Ronit Antebi Hadar (SDM’07,’09,’09) and Benjamin A. Hadar (CAS’93)
Emily T. Gowen (GRS’22,’22)
Alexandra Haime-Salanic (CFA’09) and David Salanic
Densey C. Juvonen (CAS’66) and Ronald Juvonen
Brian Milholland
Jacinto Obregon
Ravindran Sankaran and Dhanalakshmi Ravindran
Amy Yang
Jeff J. Bowen (CAS’91, CFA’91) and Freya Bowen
Catherine D. Clark (GRS’93,’96)
Raymond Fisman and Ellie Grossman
Hanyun Gu (GRS’24)
Bonnie L. Hennig-Trestman (CAS’87, SSW’89) and Robert L. Trestman
James G. Ierardi (CAS’77) and Elizabeth Ierardi
Agnieszka Kowalczyk (CAS’24)
Xiaofeng Liu (GRS’99,’05) and Weihong Xiao
Karen B. Metheny (GRS’02) and Andrew Metheny
Marc S. Rysman and Michelle Ephraim
Mani P. Tangellamudi (CAS’24)
Marc S. Taylor (CAS’70) and Anita Taylor
Ray J. Velez (CAS’92) and Cherith Velez
Alan E. Waldman (CAS’63) and Marlyn S. O’Mansky
Raymond J. Yang (CGS’21, CAS’23)
Ernest Zucco, III (CAS’91, SSW’98) and Marcia M. Zucco

2024 Giving Day Challenge Sponsors

Keri P. Delp (CAS’98)
Michelle Feinberg (CAS’91)
John Giouroukakis, CAS’94
Bryan Biniak (Pardee’90)
Mary Elizabeth Jones-Dilworth (CAS’02)
Evan S. Hirsch (CAS’03)
Scott Andrew Webster, Esq. (CAS’93, SSW’25)
Dr. Jane Eva Baxter (CAS’93)
Fred Kleiner