Our Students

Here are just a few ways Defy Expectation has supported our students:

• Our donors contributed $60 million to the endowment for financial aid and scholarships so that the College can continue to meet 100 percent of demonstrated financial need for students, and helping the College to increase our financial aid budget by close to 50 percent since Defy Expectation began.
• Our donors have established 100 new endowed scholarships.
• Our donors helped to support more than 1,000 summer internships during the Campaign at places like the Children's Hospital Colorado, Ewha Womans University in Korea, Mystic (Conn.) Aquarium, and the U.S. Department of State.
• In 2014, Bryn Mawr launched the Career and Civic Engagement Center to help students make connections between their academic work and life beyond the College. Internships and externships, Praxis courses, workshops and intensives, civic engagement opportunities, the Leadership Learning Laboratory, the Alumnae/i-in-Residence program, and career support and networking opportunities are all coordinated by The Center, which was established through a generous $10 million gift from two past parents who spurred on many more leadership gifts through their challenge.
• Donor support helped to establish THRIVE, a 10-week course for first-year students to help with the transition to college. It offers guidance on time management skills, study habits, mental health issues, self-care, and diversity. A special weekly series addresses additional issues like “Living with an Honor Code,” Financial Health for First Year Students,” and Former President Cassidy’s “Positive Psychology.”

This level of innovation requires tremendous support and a deep belief in the outcomes. Thank you.

Opportunities Beyond the Campaign

• The Bryn Mawr Fund. Learn more here.
• Endowed scholarships for financial aid support.
• Endowed internships or summer science research support.

For more information, contact Carolyn Wilson, Director of Donor Engagement, at 610-526-5225 or cwilson2@brynmawr.edu.