On Tuesday, 93-year-old American Ruth Gottesman, widow of a major Wall Street financier in 2022, said she would donate $1 billion (922 million euros) to the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, a nonprofit medical school where she has been for decades worked as a professor and researcher. Gottesman called for the money to be used to cover tuition for all students enrolling in the school starting in August 2024.
The donation is notable not only because of its size, but also because the school it is intended for is located in the Bronx, the poorest and most underserved borough of New York. In the announcement video, which is quite moving, the students react with minutes of applause, some with tears and hugs:
We are deeply grateful that Dr. Ruth Gottesman, Professor Emeritus of Pediatrics at @EinsteinMedhas given a transformative gift #MontefioreEinstein– the largest of all medical schools in the country – which ensures that no student has to pay tuition fees again. https://t.co/XOy9HZLbfD pic.twitter.com/1ijv02jHFk
— Montefiore Health System (@MontefioreNYC) February 26, 2024
Gottesman studied at Barnard College and Columbia University (both very wealthy and prestigious universities) before beginning research into screening, assessment and treatment systems for people with learning disabilities at Albert Einstein College in 1968. She was also Professor Emeritus of the University's Department of Pediatrics and Chair of the Board of Trustees.
He has expressly stated that he wants to use his donation to enable young doctors to start their careers debt-free and hopes that people who would otherwise not have been able to afford medical school can now enroll in the school. In fact, the American university system imposes very high fees that students can only pay if they accrue huge debts, which they then begin paying off – often with great effort and sacrifice – once they graduate and enter the workforce. Anyone who studies medicine at a US university can graduate with more than $200,000 in debt.