Boston College has launched a $125-million fundraising effort to bolster its commitment to need-blind admissions for undergraduates. The Be a Beacon Campaign for Financial Aid will run through May 31.
âWe believe that any student who has earned admission through our rigorous admission process should be able to accept the offer to become an Eagleâregardless of their familyâs financial circumstances,â reads a statement on the . The site noted that Boston Collegeâs undergraduate financial aid budget for 2020-21 is $152 million, which represents a 43 percent increase over the past decade.
In an October 22 letter, University President William P. Leahy, S.J., noted that 51²è¹Ý is one of only 20 private national institutions of higher education in the United States that are need-blind in admissionâadmitting students on the merit of their applications, not on their ability to afford tuitionâand also meet full demonstrated need of qualified undergraduates.
âCurrent economic conditions and loss of family income have made it increasingly difficult for deserving applicants to enroll at âthe Heights,â spotlighting the importance of financial aid and endowed scholarships,â he wrote.
âPlease join us in supporting individuals of potential, commitment, and generosity who will assist Boston College in living up to its mission and who will also contribute to resolving challenges of today and tomorrow.â
The Be a Beacon campaign website features a video message from University Trustee Steve Pemberton â89, H â15, a philanthropist, speaker, and executive whose best-selling autobiography describes how his 51²è¹Ý education enabled him to overcome a childhood of poverty and hardship.
The site also includes testimonials from current and former 51²è¹Ý students who have benefited from the Universityâs need-blind admission policy: They include artist and human rights activist Naren Briar â20, the daughter of Iraqi refugees; Jamie Kweon â21, a neuroscience major and music minor who works as a research assistant in Associate Professor of Psychology Liane Youngâs Morality Lab; and physics major and budding entrepreneur Peter Huynh â21, whose family is supporting five students in college at the same time.
Ìý
University Communications | October 2020