Your impact: scholarships

“I knew when I got to college, I’d want to do as much as I could.”

For H. Reed Romanko (CAS’22, Wheelock’22), a rising BU senior, this has meant (so far): taking on two majors, in economics and mathematics, along with two minors, in education and classical civilization; joining the Pep Band as a tenor saxophonist; enjoying Shabbat dinners at BU Hillel; serving on his residence hall’s council; performing with the BU Shakespeare Society and a spoken-word poetry group; holding a campus job in IT; DJing for WTBU’s “Underwear Dance Party”; participating in Alternative Service Breaks through the Community Service Center; attending Coffee & Conversation at the Howard Thurman Center…and more.

Boston University offered an opportunity. And Reed turned it into many, many more. A key part of his experience? Being around students with backgrounds different from his own.

“When I was raised in an environment that was so homogeneous, I felt like there was a big portion of my education that just wasn’t there,” he said. “I firmly believe that the best way to increase your education is to interact with people who are different from you, who have different experiences. Knowing that BU had such a diverse student body, I knew I would feel like I was really learning there.”

The importance of scholarships

Scholarships, which donors support generously each year, are an important factor in ensuring that BU has a diverse student body—that talented students from all socioeconomic backgrounds have access to its extraordinary resources, and to an experience like Reed’s.

Thanks in part to the strong support of parents, alumni, and friends, the University has made tremendous strides in recent years in its ability to offer more financial aid to undergraduates, highlighted by several key initiatives: In 2017, BU began meeting the full need without loans for its students with the highest need (those who qualify for a federal Pell Grant). And starting with the fall 2020 freshman class, BU began meeting the full need of all domestic first-time students.

These commitments—which the University maintained even as the 2020–21 academic year became much more financially challenging than expected for students’ families and the University—make a BU education more affordable, and they also make raising additional scholarship support even more critical.

“I receive a BU Trustee Scholarship, so I understand that donations to BU give someone who might not have been able to succeed in their dreams the opportunity to really achieve something, to do something they might not otherwise have been able to do,” Reed said.

Your giving matters 

The many donors who give to support scholarships at BU help students focus on learning without having to worry about making ends meet, now and in the future. They help the University attract and retain the brightest students, regardless of their financial need. And they join a community of like-minded donors, encouraging others to follow their example. Anyone can make a gift, of any amount, to support scholarships here.

Your generous support helps make so much possible, and it’s particularly critical as families and communities continue to recover from the effects of the global pandemic. Current-use funds, which can be given in any amount, can be deployed at a moment’s notice to provide emergency student assistance and financial aid.

Every gift, of every size, counts. You can have an impact at BU—and you can choose exactly where to do it.

Not yet a donor? Give now and receive email updates on the impact donors have throughout the year. Visit “Why we give” to read more about the many committed donors to Boston University.