Former Trustee Chalan Colby ’61 has made a $1 million matching challenge gift in support of the Scripps Access Initiative. Funds from the initiative will allow the College to increase campus diversity through the enrollment of students with limited financial resources and those with undocumented status who are ineligible for federal student aid.
“Gifts to the Scripps Access Initiative have the ability to truly transform the future of the College, bringing us closer to our long-term goal of admitting and enrolling all deserving students, regardless of financial need,” says President Amy Marcus-Newhall.
In recent decades, the College has committed to enrolling more high-achieving students with high financial need, preserving the critical thinking and exchange of perspectives that characterize Scripps’ rich intellectual environment. In 2002, the Scripps College Academy was founded, providing college preparation support for high-achieving young women from underserved communities in the greater Los Angeles area. In 2010, the College established the First-Generation @Scripps program aimed at enhancing the college experiences and navigating unique challenges faced by those who are the first in their families to attend college. In 2017, Scripps launched the $10 million Presidential Scholarship Initiative to enable the College to offer full grant support for its highest-need students and decrease loans in other financial aid packages.
In response to that grant, Colby resolved to make a gift to inspire others in the College community to support the Scripps Access Initiative, helping to fulfill the College’s promise to deliver the full Scripps experience for every student, regardless of financial need.
“The generosity and foresight of former Trustee and alumna Chalan Colby ’61 has already stirred donors to make additional gifts to the Scripps Access Initiative. The Board thanks her for her continued dedication to uplifting the community and making Scripps stronger,” says Board Chair Laura Hockett ’85.
Colby supports the Scripps Access Initiative because of the powerful impact of her own Scripps education. “Because my four years at Scripps transformed my life in ways that have become more and more evident over the years,” she explains, “I cannot think of a better way to give back to Scripps than to provide the same opportunity to other students.”
To learn more about the Scripps Access Initiative, please contact Associate Vice President for Philanthropy Enrique Gonzalez-Salgado at [email protected]. To make a gift, please visit our giving form and select Scripps Access Initiative from the dropdown menu. If you prefer to make a pledge, please click here.