Named Scholarships
We celebrate and appreciate our generous alumni, parents, trustees, foundations and other friends of Pitzer College who have established or support need-based scholarships to the tremendous benefit of our students’ academic aspirations.
Please explore the information below to learn about the enormous impact of scholarships, to meet some of our student scholars and to see how you can help change lives and build futures through scholarship support. You can also visit our Named Endowed Scholarships page to view a list and description of Pitzer's existing endowed scholarships. Contact the Office of College Advancement if you have questions about creating or supporting a scholarship: 909.621.8130 or giving@joe-yan.net.
Our Priorities When Awarding Scholarship
Every year, Pitzer admits a full class of talented students from all over the world. Students of diverse backgrounds are attracted to Pitzer because they recognize the lifelong values of an education emphasizing social justice, intercultural understanding and environmental sensitivity.
As interest in a Pitzer education increases, so does the need and demand for financial aid. Scholarships ensure that Pitzer College can admit the very best and most qualified applicants into our prestigious academic program.
We remain committed to meeting 100 percent of an admitted student’s demonstrated financial need, but it is not easy. Scholarship donors are truly the heart of making a Pitzer education accessible. Through establishing a scholarship, you open doors that would otherwise remain shut.
Contact the Office of College Advancement if you have questions about creating or supporting a scholarship: 909.621.8130 or giving@joe-yan.net.
Allisyn Ruttle ’16
“Without donor generosity, my success throughout these four years would not have been possible, and I cannot find the words to sufficiently express how important donations are to so many Pitzer students like me who can excel in higher education but don’t have the resources to make their dreams a reality.”
Pitzer remains steadfast in our commitment to be an inclusive, diverse campus and ensure that students from lower- and middle-income families can receive a Pitzer education regardless of economic circumstances. However, many of the best and brightest students do not have the resources to cover the full expense of a Pitzer degree. Through scholarship support, you help lift families over financial obstacles and allow Pitzer to select the strongest, most talented students for admission: a lack of means does not mean a lack of admittance. This keeps Pitzer vibrant.
Contact the Office of College Advancement if you have questions about creating or supporting a scholarship: 909.621.8130 or giving@joe-yan.net.
Diego Arroyo ’18
“Thank you so much for providing me an opportunity to continue my studies! As a low-income, first-generation, Latino college student, I have had to face certain financial barriers that I have only been able to overcome through scholarships like yours. I hope to one day have the opportunity to pay it forward to the many students who will enter higher education and will be faced with a multitude of financial barriers. It is my belief that no individual should be denied the opportunity to an education simply because of a lack of economic resources.”
Additionally, Pitzer College is deeply committed to helping students leave college with as little debt as possible. It is alarming to realize that there is now greater student loan debt than credit card debt in the US. Through scholarship support, Pitzer students graduate owing 20 percent less in student loans than the national average. In the 2015 U.S.News & World Report Best Colleges publication, Pitzer is ranked #20 among National Liberal Arts Colleges with the Least Student Loan Debt at Graduation.
Your scholarship support allows students to live out their goals without worrying about repaying massive debt.
Contact the Office of College Advancement if you have questions about creating or supporting a scholarship: 909.621.8130 or giving@joe-yan.net.
Forrest Fulgenzi ’18
“Thank you for providing me with this gift. It is allowing me to not only finish my studies here at Pitzer, but it is allowing me to pursue my passions without the anxiety of overwhelming student debt.”
Pitzer College is ranked among the top schools for its selectivity, and with increasing applications to the College, our selectivity will only increase. Within the amazing students Pitzer accepts, of course, some consider enrolling in other institutions as they contemplate committing Pitzer. It is imperative that we secure additional scholarship contributions so that we can offer competitive financial assistance and enrich our campus community with a diversity of viewpoints, life experiences and ideas about how to change the world. Phenomenal students want to attend Pitzer; your support is needed to get them here and help them stay here.
Contact the Office of College Advancement if you have questions about creating or supporting a scholarship: 909.621.8130 or giving@joe-yan.net.
Will Ortiz ’19
“Thank you so much for your support and for making it possible for financially disadvantaged students such as me to attend a great college that will help me develop my future and give me a greater chance of having a thorough foundation for a career.”
Establishing a Scholarship
Pitzer College invites you to support students and participate in increasing our ability to provide need-based assistance to those who dream of a obtaining a college degree but do not have the means to fulfill the financial obligations. We encourage you to create your own named endowed scholarship fund in a way that means the most to you. Perhaps no other philanthropy has a greater impact on a student.
Should your current situation prevent you from establishing your own scholarship fund at present, we invite you to make a gift to any of Pitzer’s existing endowed or annual scholarships, all of which would benefit from your generosity and serve students. A list of those scholarships can be found here.
Help us provide access to a Pitzer education to aspiring students who need a financial leg-up to earn a college degree and prepare for a future of service, leadership and ideas and that transform the world. Please contact the Office of College Advancement at 909.621.8130 or giving@joe-yan.net if you have questions or are ready to create a scholarship and change a life.
Crystal Sin ’19
Thank you for providing me the opportunity to reach for a brighter future.”
An endowed scholarship can be established now or created for the future through your estate plan. The principal of your endowed fund—the full amount of your gift—stays intact in perpetuity, with a percentage of the earnings providing the scholarship support. The balance of earnings in excess of the amount approved annually for payout will be retained in the corpus of the fund, allowing your endowment to grow. It is also a wonderful way to honor someone special that influenced you—a family member, a cherished friend or a beloved faculty or staff mentor.
$100,000
At this level, your named endowed scholarship may support students with financial need with preferential award criteria that you determine, such as a declared major or area of research interest.
$50,000
At this level, your named endowed scholarship will support any admitted Pitzer student with financial need.
Contact the Office of College Advancement if you have questions about creating or supporting a scholarship: 909.621.8130 or giving@joe-yan.net.
Feel free to view a list and descriptions of Pitzer’s existing endowed scholarships
click to viewWith a gift of $5,000 or more, you can provide a one-year Pitzer Promise Scholarship for a high-achieving student with financial need. You will get to know a little about your scholar and, with your permission, they will learn a little bit about you, too! Part of the idea behind the Pitzer Promise Scholarship program is promoting a pay-it-forward ethos. With a gift to the Pitzer Promise Scholarship, you can help a Pitzer student become an engaged citizen of the world. It’s an investment in our shared future.
Scholarship recipient and alumna Haley Burger ’20
“I am very grateful for people like you who value education and understand the impact it can have on a person’s life. I hope I can continue this positive service and pass it forward by helping to change the world in my own way.”
Connect with Us
The Office of Advancement furthers the mission, values, and educational objectives of the College by engaging the Pitzer community and encouraging lifelong investment in support of our students as they become socially responsible citizens of the world.