Investing in Scholarships at Georgetown

INVESTING IN SCHOLARSHIPS AT GEORGETOWN

A Georgetown education has an exponential impact. You can set it in motion.

—GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT JOHN J. DEGIOIA

“Our identity as one of the world’s great universities is inextricably tied to our ability to ensure that the best and brightest students—from a broad range of backgrounds— are able to become a part of our Georgetown community.”

Georgetown’s commitment to help meet the world’s most profound needs has shaped centuries of growth and progress. Today, it animates the university’s $3 billion campaign ambition, calling us to invest in areas of great strength for Georgetown—and even greater opportunity.

Through Called to Be: The Campaign for Georgetown, we will answer with action and impact, building a thriving community of students ready to discover who they are called to be.

It has been 45 years since Georgetown made the transformational decision to become one of the nation’s few institutions that admits undergraduate students on a need-blind basis and meets U.S. students’ full demonstrated financial need.

This decision unlocked our potential, connecting us to a nearly 500-year-old Catholic and Jesuit tradition of providing access to higher education—and accelerating our work to create a better world.

It’s no coincidence that we’ve been a university on the move ever since.

Increasing the number of philanthropically funded undergraduate scholarships is Georgetown’s foremost priority in the Called to Be campaign.

This commitment to remove financial barriers and shrink students’ loan burdens is critical to our success and central to who we are.

IT ENSURES THAT EVERY STUDENT WE CHOOSE CAN CHOOSE GEORGETOWN, TOO.

IT ENABLES US TO COMPETE WITH THE BEST UNIVERSITIES FOR THE BEST TALENT.

IT ENRICHES THE GEORGETOWN EXPERIENCE OF ALL STUDENTS.

IT EMBODIES OUR CATHOLIC AND JESUIT VALUES.

The exponential impact of a Georgetown education wouldn’t be possible without our exceptional students. Giving to scholarships is the single most direct way you can help Georgetown become the university we are called to be.

OUR DEFINING COMMITMENT

TRANSFORMING OUR TRAJECTORY

1978

THE YEAR GEORGETOWN INSTITUTED A POLICY OF MEETFULL-NEED FINANCIAL AID

MAKING A GEORGETOWN EDUCATION POSSIBLE

$84,696

TOTAL UNDERGRADUATE COST OF ATTENDANCE FOR 2022-2023

55% of Georgetown undergraduates received some form of financial aid (scholarship, grant, loan, work study) in 2021-22 academic year

A DEGREE IN DEMAND

The number of first-year Georgetown applications rose from 6,300 in 1975 to 26,670 in 2022.

$46,875 average need-based undergraduate scholarship grant award AY 2021-22

1789

SCHOLARSHIPS

Launched in 2009, donor-funded 1789 Scholarships both fund the outright grant component of a student’s financial aid package and reduce the loan component by as much as $3,000 per year. They are awarded to students with the greatest demonstrated need.

94% graduation rate among firstgeneration students in the Georgetown Scholars Program (learn more on page 20)

FUNDING THE COMMITMENT

20% national bachelor’s attainment rate among first-generation U.S. college students

49%

six-year graduation rate among U.S. students receiving Pell grants who entered college in 2015

WHAT IS NEED-BLIND, MEET-FULL-NEED? NEED-BLIND ADMISSIONS

When making admissions decisions, Georgetown does not take into account what a student can afford to pay. We admit students on merit alone.

MEET-FULL-NEED FINANCIAL AID

Every admitted U.S citizen and permanent resident receives a financial aid package equal to 100% of their demonstrated financial need (learn more on page 28).

Did you know?

$125.3 MILLION SPENT ON UNDERGRADUATE SCHOLARSHIP GRANTS IN 2021-2022

92.4%

of scholarship grants are need-based; the remainder are athletics scholarships

PERCENTAGE OF SCHOLARSHIP SPENDING FUNDED BY PHILANTHROPY

39.7% Average COFHE* school

37.5% Median COFHE school

23.1% Georgetown

*The Consortium on Financing Higher Education (COFHE) is an unincorporated, voluntary, institutionally supported organization of 39 highly selective, private liberal arts colleges and universities, all committed to meeting the full demonstrated financial need of admitted students.

On average, 63% of admitted students offered a donor-funded 1789 Scholarship ultimately enroll at Georgetown. (The university’s overall average yield is 48%.)

Students who receive donorfunded 1789 Scholarships graduate with approximately $7,000 in student loan debt, compared to a typical amount of $19,000 for students who accept loans in their Georgetown aid package.

ERIC BAZAIL-EIMIL (SFS’23)

WE WILL ENSURE THAT EVERY STUDENT WE CHOOSE CAN CHOOSE GEORGETOWN, TOO.

Our strength as an institution is inextricably linked to the strength of our students. They’re our foundation, and they’re our future.

To elevate Georgetown’s distinction as one of the world’s greatest universities, we must keep Georgetown affordable for all students who merit admission.

‘THE RESOURCES I NEEDED TO PURSUE MY PASSIONS’

“My Georgetown education helped me discover my calling as a journalist and gave me the resources I needed to pursue my passions as a writer and storyteller. I am a fellow at a national newsroom entirely because of the generous support I received that made my formation at Georgetown possible.”

—Eric

Bazail-Eimil (SFS’23)

Originally from South Florida, Bazail-Eimil majored in Regional and Comparative Studies with a concentration in Africa and Latin America. He has interned with The Wall Street Journal and NBC News’s Meet the Press, and been selected as a 2023-24 POLITICO fellow. On the Hilltop, Bazail-Eimil wrote for The Hoya and The Georgetown Voice, was a Student Advisory Board Co-Chair for the Institute of Politics and Public Service (GUPolitics), and served as a Georgetown University Student Association Student Senator.

CALLED TO BE ACCESSIBLE TO THE WORLD’S BEST STUDENTS

“I hope to find my true passion. I hope to live a life dedicated to the service of others. I hope to be able to use the privilege that I have to attend Georgetown and channel it into real and valuable change. This scholarship means so much to not only me but my family, as well. I am pursuing a career that is very novel in my family. This support lifts away worries that we might have had about taking a leap of faith into our unknown.”

—Mary Nguyen (C’25); Houston, Texas; biology major

“Being a Hoya has meant being a part of a community that has allowed me to better all aspects of myself, while being a part of the support system that allows others to do the same. I have had the chance to be a part of some amazing research here. I had no experience, but it was the culture at Georgetown that allowed me to work with a professor I admire greatly on disease ecology/ epidemiology research that has been covered by CNN and published by the American Journal of Epidemiology.”

—Alexes Merritt (SFS’23), global health and biotechnology major

“I’m an aspiring diplomat. I adore studying international affairs, and in my mind, there was no better city to do so than Washington, DC, and no better institution than Georgetown University. At Georgetown, I have the opportunity to experiment with my interests to find a calling.”

—Rory Dixon (SFS’25); Cardiff, United Kingdom; international affairs major

“This scholarship has been life-changing for me and defining in my underlying experience at Georgetown. It has allowed me the opportunity to not only excel academically but also to explore socially. I hope through this scholarship I will be able to fulfill my educational goals and go into the nursing field with a fresh perspective and make a difference in my community. I want to do research and combine my interests in health care and technology to advance the nursing field.

—Hannah Ajibola (N’24); Silver Spring, Maryland; nursing major and computer science minor focused on informatics

BILL AND MARY POLAND (PARENTS’13)

WE WILL COMPETE WITH THE BEST INSTITUTIONS FOR THE BEST STUDENTS.

Generosity counts when you’re trying to attract the world’s most gifted students. Our peer institutions and competitors are providing increasingly generous scholarships. Georgetown must do the same.

For decades, our meet-full-need commitment has fueled the university’s trajectory, and philanthropically funded scholarships will help keep our sights set high.

‘NOBLE HEARTS AND LOFTY DESTINIES’

“Young people emerge from Georgetown with noble hearts and lofty destinies. I know they will leave a positive impact on those around them and beyond.”

—Bill Poland (Parent’13)

“Care of the whole person, serving the common good—everything that Georgetown stands for resonates with me and my family. Through its need-blind admissions policy and meet-full-need financial aid, Georgetown has always looked for the best students and provided help for those who need it. We are all very proud of this scholarship. It’s a gift that feeds our soul.”

—Mary Poland (Parent’13)

When Stratton Poland (B’13) chose to study finance at Georgetown McDonough, his parents started to learn about Georgetown’s mission and values. Before long, Mary and Bill Poland (Parents’13) were deeply entrenched in the fabric of the university community—as volunteers, leaders, and donors. Established in 2016, the Poland Family Endowed Scholarship Fund supports students from Texas, the state where Bill grew up.

Jerome

“I knew that I wanted to go to school to study business, but being that I was the first person in my family to go to college and was also from a low-income background, I didn’t have much prior knowledge of the college application process. So I was grateful to have a pivotal educator in my life—my high school engineering teacher— who sat down with me and helped me look at all the schools. I went to Georgetown Admissions Ambassador Program weekend, and I just felt like Georgetown was going to be home.

The opportunity to participate in the Community Scholars Program (CSP) was really the icing on the cake for me. The CSP enticed me because we were able to start school early, take some classes, and warm up to this level of a toptier university. I accepted the offer to come to Georgetown, and the first day of CSP I felt like, okay, cool, I could really be myself here.

‘I JUST FELT LIKE GEORGETOWN WAS GOING TO BE HOME’

Smalls (B’19, G’22) reflects on how the Georgetown community helped shape and support his ambitions.

There are what I would call high-impact practices and also high-impact people throughout my time at Georgetown that shaped a lot of my identity, such as working for the After School kids program at the Center for Social Justice Research, Teaching & Service; going on to revitalize a mentorship program where we got men of color at Georgetown to work with the young men at Duke Ellington School of the Arts, in a program I started called the Male Development Association; taking Eric Koester’s book-writing class; and writing my book and sharing my story as a way of offering advice to young people from my perspective as a young person. Receiving the Patrick Healy Fellowship was also very influential. I also did some work with GOOD Projects, which is a non-profit focused on alleviating poverty in DC started by three Georgetown alumni. Those moments really shaped my identity.

It’s been one of those journeys of coming of age or ‘coming to know,’ as Father Kemp would say.”

Jerome Smalls (B’19, G’22) is a first-generation college graduate and scholarship recipient. During his time at Georgetown, Smalls participated in the Georgetown Scholars Program and Community Scholars Program, received the 2018 Lena Landegger Community Service Award, won the 2019 Georgetown McDonough Service Leadership Award, and was a Patrick Healy Fellow.

He is also the author of Small Talk: One Youth. Seven Stories. Countless Lessons. (2018), a coming-of-age story that offers young people advice on overcoming obstacles, and the founder of SmallTalk Group LLC, a motivational group dedicated to empowering students and educators through storytelling and cultural competency.

While completing a Georgetown’s Master’s program in Educational Transformation, Smalls helped launch and lead The Pivotal Network, a Georgetown-led initiative that provides professional development opportunities for high school teachers in underserved communities—educators who often play a crucial role in shaping the trajectories of first-generation students.

Smalls currently serves as the Special Assistant to the Mayor of Charleston for Special Projects, reinvesting in the South Carolina community that helped set him on the path to Georgetown.

Did you know?

Georgetown is one of only 39 schools in the Consortium on Financing Higher Education. COFHE colleges and universities are committed to meeting the full demonstrated financial need of admitted students.

HEIDI ELMENDORF, PH.D.

WE WILL ENRICH THE GEORGETOWN EXPERIENCE FOR ALL STUDENTS.

When Georgetown enrolls bright, ambitious, and passionate students with wide-ranging experiences and backgrounds, our entire community benefits.

Donor-funded scholarships ensure that we can give every Georgetown student a richer, more expansive learning experience—and give the world its strongest citizens and leaders.

EDUCATING STUDENTS IN THE CONTEXT OF OUR WORLD

“The only way we can adequately prepare leaders for society is to make sure that those individuals are being educated in the context of our society. The more representative, the more inclusive, that our campus can be, the more we are our world. And that’s needed for Georgetown to achieve its educational mission.

Science is about creativity. If you are not a scientist, you often think science is about the facts. But important work in science has always been done by the people who think differently than those that came before. One of the best ways to ensure that science will continue to advance as a discipline is to ensure we are welcoming in the greatest diversity of perspectives.

We know that, nationally, STEM disciplines present unusual barriers to inclusive excellence. So we work to change our teaching approach to rethink what we are valuing and the support structures we were building in.

Everything that I’ve done with an eye toward inclusive excellence, it just makes my course better, and it has made me better.”

—Heidi Elmendorf, Ph.D.

In addition to teaching biology courses and researching intestinal pathogens, Georgetown Associate Professor Heidi Elmendorf, Ph.D., directs the Program on Education, Inquiry, and Justice. She also founded and now directs the Regents STEM Scholars Program, which seeks to address the shortage of underrepresented and first-generation college students who successfully complete degrees in the sciences, as well as the Pivotal Network, which focuses on forging connections among educators to support first-generation and lower-income students.

“Going into college, I always heard the advice ‘go to office hours; speak to your professors.’ But there’s a feeling like sometimes I don’t belong here because I am first-gen, a person of color, a woman, all of that—like the odds are against me. And I thought, ‘I’m probably already going to be behind in class. How could I talk to my professors?’

Being in such a small class with professors who truly care about us, my confidence grew. And I realized, all professors here ultimately want us to learn, they want us to grow, they want to support us. The Regents STEM Scholars Program really solidified that people are here to see me succeed. No question’s a dumb question. I’m a lot smarter than I thought I was. I can make it in this program.”

—Marlene Mora (C’23), Regents STEM Scholar

“I find the Jesuit values of Georgetown transcend religious boundaries. One in particular—Community in Diversity— stands out. While growing up in rural Michigan had its advantages, my community certainly had a glaring diversity deficit. Whether in terms of race, politics, or academics, Georgetown was unique among the colleges I applied to for not only promoting diversity but for establishing it as a tenet of student life. This diversity has allowed me to engage with students with backgrounds, identities, and interests I would not have otherwise. For that, I am ever grateful.”

—Sam Lovell (C’25); Bruce Township, Michigan; government and economics major

ADANNA J. JOHNSON, PH.D.

WE WILL LIVE OUR CATHOLIC AND JESUIT VALUES.

Our commitment to educational opportunity runs deep. Every Georgetown scholarship builds on a centuries-old Jesuit tradition of providing access to higher education, prioritizing students’ accomplishments and promise over their ability to pay.

This is our legacy—and the university we are called to be.

A WHOLE-INSTITUTION APPROACH TO ACCESS AND EQUITY

“Equity, diversity, inclusion, and access automatically are centers of the conversations we have around our Jesuit identity. We are beholden to our commitments to caring for the whole person and developing people for others, and I believe these should be at the center of the ways in which we approach our pedagogy, work with students, and function as an institution.

Equity and inclusion is not just in one place. Every dean, every department chair, every faculty member, every member of our community, every administrator, every staff member, needs to make this a value at the center of their work—not an add-on.

And I think that being a Jesuit institution, and having our Georgetown values of community and diversity, allow us to really catapult our focus on this work.”

—Adanna J. Johnson, Ph.D.

As Associate Vice President for Student Equity & Inclusion, Adanna J. Johnson, Ph.D., leads Georgetown’s Office of Student Equity and Inclusion (OSEI), which brings under one umbrella the Center for Multicultural Equity & Access, Community Scholars Program, Disability Cultural Center, LGBTQ Resource Center, and Women’s Center. In taking a holistic approach to equity and inclusion, OSEI seeks to increase resource-sharing, programming, and awareness of available support systems at the university.

Did you know?

Today, 94% of first-generation and low-income students at Georgetown graduate—a rate nearly three times the national average.

CREATING AN ENVIRONMENT WHERE EVERY STUDENT CAN FLOURISH

We know that the work of creating an inclusive institution goes beyond ensuring financial accessibility: we must support students to and through Georgetown. Over the past 55 years, Georgetown has developed several complementary programs to ensure a thriving student community. These include:

• The Community Scholars Program , established in 1968, promotes social justice by enrolling and graduating a more racially, culturally, and socioeconomically diverse student body through a summer immersion session and ongoing programming.

• The Georgetown Scholars Program, founded in 2005, provides community support and resources that foster first-generation and low-income students’ engagement, leadership, and academic and personal growth.

• The Regents STEM Scholars Program, launched in 2014 as a wing of the Community Scholars Program, addresses the critical shortage of diverse and first-generation students who want to major in biomedical sciences by offering enhanced academic support and research opportunities.

• The Business Scholars Program, the latest extension of the Community Scholars Program, prepares racially and socioeconomically diverse scholars for the business school environment through practical tools, community, and support.

INSPIRED TO BE A PERSON FOR OTHERS

“Georgetown’s Jesuit value of people for others inspires me to make sure that I make the most of my time here and graduate with all the tools I need to be a person for others. As I get a better idea of my career goals and what I would like to accomplish in the future, I am constantly wondering how whatever path I choose will help my community.”

—Safa Wardere (C’25), economics major

Safa Wardere is a scholarship recipient, first-generation college student, and participant and mentor in the Georgetown Scholars Program, which provides robust wraparound services and resources for low-income and first-generation college students. She also serves as marketing and publicity chair for Georgetown University Women of Color.

SAFA WARDERE (C’25)

GIFTS TO SCHOLARSHIP MADE SIMPLE

The generosity of our Georgetown community is crucial as we work to bring the best students to campus, regardless of their ability to pay. It’s why so many of our alumni, parents, and friends give—to make possible everything we are and are called to be.

But philanthropy isn’t just about why. It’s also about how—how you design your gift for meaningful impact and how it transforms the life of Georgetown students. Here are a few questions we hear frequently from donors.

What’s the difference between current-use and endowed gifts?

CURRENT-USE GIFTS:

See immediate impact

Current-use gifts—directly expendable funds—strengthen Georgetown now and ensure our continued growth as a leading global university. Current-use funding complements the endowment and has full and immediate impact.

Donors making a current-use gift of any size may choose to direct it to the Georgetown Fund, the beneficiary of unrestricted gifts through our Annual Giving program. Georgetown directs 100% of Georgetown Fund gifts to 1789 Scholarships for undergraduate students.

ENDOWED FUNDS:

Provide permanent support

Endowment income is the principal source of dedicated, long-term financial support for the university. It lends fiscal stability and enables the university to make dependable, long-term invest-

ments and to ensure that the brightest students have access to a Georgetown education.

What exactly is the endowment?

Georgetown’s pooled endowment is a collection of individual endowed funds— much like the way individual investors pool their assets in a mutual fund. Our investment office manages the endowment as a single pooled investment. The original value of gifts to the endowment (the principal) stays untouched. And we use a portion of the earnings (the income) to forever fund each donor’s philanthropic intents.

What happens as an endowed scholarship fund builds?

When you choose to build an endowed scholarship fund across a period of years, resulting income during that time supports 1789 Scholarships. (Learn more in the hybrid gifts section on the next page.)

Did you know?

20.9% of Georgetown’s endowment is earmarked for student aid.

Did you know?

A named and endowed scholarship must be fully funded by Dec. 31 in order to be matched with a student the following academic year. Current-use scholarships must receive a cash pledge payment by June 30 for the scholarship to be awarded in the following academic year.

What happens when an endowment is fully funded?

Donors making endowed scholarship gifts of $150K or more will have their scholarship “matched” to a specific undergraduate. Or, depending on the gift, perhaps an entire undergraduate cohort, funding a scholar in every class... every year... forever.

More than that—an endowed scholarship fund becomes a lasting part of each donor family’s story. Donors receive updates on their endowed scholarship’s financial performance, invitations to celebrations where donors and scholarship students can meet in person, and updates on what scholarship students are achieving on campus.

Hybrid gifts—a powerful combination

Some donors establishing endowed scholarships choose to commit a portion of their gift—or an additional annual gift—for current use, ensuring that their named scholarship can be distributed immediately as they are making pledge payments to build up an endowed fund.

The example on the right shows how a hybrid commitment of $187,500, payable over five years, could establish a scholarship fund and begin providing direct scholarship support immediately—unlike a straight $150,000 endowment gift, where the named scholarship would be awarded after the pledge is fulfilled.

STRAIGHT ENDOWMENT EXAMPLE

Endowment income pooled in general scholarship fund. Named scholarship awarded in perpetuity once endowment fully funded.

HYBRID EXAMPLE

Named scholarship awarded immediately with current-use funds while endowment grows to $150,000 threshold.

How much money does it take to establish a named scholarship?

Current-use

• A $100,000 current-use gift paid across four years will create a named domestic undergraduate scholarship (awarded to one student across four years).

• A $300,000 current-use gift paid across four years will create a named international undergraduate scholarship (awarded to one student across four years).

Endowed

• $150,000 will create a named and endowed scholarship fund that supports U.S. undergraduate students year after year.

• $1.5 million will create a named and endowed scholarship fund that supports international undergraduate students.

• $5 million will create a named and endowed undergraduate student cohort, with a scholarship awarded to one student in every undergraduate class. That means every future Georgetown graduating class would have a student receiving your family’s scholarship.

How much does it take to “fully fund” one student?

• $1.7 million will create an endowed scholarship fund whose income covers the equivalent of the full cost of attending Georgetown.

• $340,000 ($85,000/year) across four years will create a current-use scholarship that covers the equivalent of the full cost of attending Georgetown.

Note: Gifts may not always be awarded to a single student, depending on the need demonstrated.

Can I add preferences to scholarships?

Georgetown first awards undergraduate scholarships based on students’ demonstrated need, and gifts without additional preferences about the scholarship recipient allow us to provide the most scholarship dollars to the widest array of students.

But we understand that preferences can make giving more meaningful for some donors. Donors making an endowed gift of $150,000 or more or a current-use gift of $100,000 or more over four years may choose to indicate a preference for how their scholarship is awarded. (The minimum to indicate an international place of residency is $1.5M endowed or $300,000 current use over four years.)

Donors may specify up to two preferences, such as Georgetown school; U.S. state or region residency; major; Catholic & Jesuit Heritage Scholarship (graduate of a Cristo Rey, KIPP, or Catholic/Jesuit high school), provided there is no violation of the Civil Rights Act or the D.C. Human Rights Act.

Ultimately, we work with our donors to craft agreements that are as flexible as possible to permit the productive use of the funds while honoring donor intent.

What does Georgetown do for international students with financial need?

Georgetown deeply values the contributions of its international students and is need-blind in admissions for international applicants. Georgetown currently provides approximately $2.3 million annually to fund scholarships for international students—half made possible through philanthropy—but is unable to meet the full need of all international students.

We seek to significantly increase philanthropic support for international student scholarships. Achieving this will require the partnership of alumni and friends from around the world who are committed to making our campus community even more globally representative.

How do scholarships fit in with the rest of a student’s financial aid package?

Georgetown scholarships are awarded to meet 100% of a student’s need, after taking into account the expected family contribution, federal student loans, student earnings from part-time employment, and other outside aid.

THE ANATOMY OF UNDERGRADUATE FINANCIAL AID

• full-time tuition

• average class fees

• activity/NSO fees

• average room & board

Expected Family Contribution

Calculated using FAFSA and CSS Profile

• average books

• personal expenses

• travel

Demonstrated Need

Georgetown meets 100% of each student’s demonstrated need through a financial aid package. Every aid package is a unique mix of up to four funding sources:

1. Federal grants (e.g. Pell grants)

2. Federal loans

3. Federal work-study

4. Scholarship grants (funded by Georgetown and our generous donors)

FOR 45 YEARS, GEORGETOWN HAS BEEN LEADING THE NATIONAL CONVERSATION ON COLLEGE AFFORDABILITY AND OPPORTUNITY. NOW IT’S TIME TO STEP FORWARD EVEN MORE BOLDLY.

Today, we are called to be accessible to the world’s best students. We are called to be a university enriched by an array of perspectives, experiences, and talents. We are called to build a thriving student community.

But we can’t do it without the partnership of our philanthropic community. Donor support for scholarships advances Georgetown in incalculable ways, providing every student with a more expansive learning experience—and giving the world its strongest citizens and leaders.

“Ensuring that the very best students can come to Georgetown has always been our highest priority. This commitment enables us to fulfill our mission as a leading university—deepening our impact on the world, on the lives of our young people, and enhancing the experience of our entire community.”

—GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT JOHN J. DEGIOIA

WITH APPRECIATION

On behalf of the future Georgetown graduates whose educational opportunity depends on your support— and on behalf of the communities they’ll enrich for a lifetime—we thank you for your consideration.

To learn more about these priorities and the difference your gift could make, please contact us at scholarshipgiving@georgetown.edu.