- A 93 year old woman has donated $1 billion for free college tuition
- The woman, Ruth Gottesman, donated the money to a Bronx college
- She is the widow of billio40naire investor David Gottesman
Students at a Bronx college will receive free tuition after a $1 billion donation. 93 year old Ruth Gottesman donated $1 billion in February 2025 to the medical school to help college students receive free tuition. Gottesman is the widow of the late David Gottesman, the founder of First Manhattan Co. Gottesman died in 2022 at age 96.
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Gottesman invested in Berkshire Hathaway, a huge conglomerate where his friend Warren Buffett still serves as CEO. His wife has personal connections to the school she donated to. She is the chair of the board of trustees at the college. She joined the College of Medicine there in 1968.
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Find out the story of Gottesman’s generous donation and what it means for students there.
What is the story of 93 year old Ruth Gottesman’s donation?
Gottesman donated the money to the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in the Bronx, New York. Her generous donations rank among some of the largest donations ever given to a US school, according to BBC News.
It also marks the largest donation ever made to a medical school on record.
Mike Bloomberg reportedly gave the largest donation—$1.8 billion—to Johns Hopkins for undergraduate financial aid.
The university dean, Dr Yaron Yomer, called the donation “transformational”.
Yomer also said it would “radically revolutionise our ability to continue attracting students who are committed to our mission, not just those who can afford it.”
Medical school is one of the most expensive forms of further education, like law school. The Bronx-based medical school happens to sit in the poorest borough in New York. Nevertheless, the tuition is $59,000 a year.
Notably, the huge donation will help reimburse students in their final year at Einstein for their spring 2024 tuition. In addition, any currently enrolled students in the medical school will receive free tuition thanks to Gottesman.
What is Gottesman’s connection to the Albert Einstein College of Medicine?
Since working there in 1968, Dr Gottesman has studied learning disabilities, run literacy programmes, and done a lot of work for the school.
On her donation, Gottesman praised students at Einstein, stating that they “provide the finest healthcare to communities here in the Bronx and all over the world.”.
Additionally, she said in an interview, “I am very thankful to my late husband, Sandy, for leaving these funds in my care, and l feel blessed to be given the great privilege of making this gift to such a worthy cause”.
Gottesman was left the huge sum of money by her late husband, and said in an interview that he told her to “do whatever you think is right with it”.
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