2023 INSTITUTIONAL ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Pride and support
Experience extraordinary philanthropy
When the Experience Powered by Northeastern campaign launched last fall, it inspired more than 1,000 members of our community to attend events in Boston; Oakland, California; Bangkok; and London. In spring 2023, the campaign touched down in Miami and Accra, Ghana, and will visit Seattle and Arlington, Virginia, in fall 2023.
Investing in experience and excellence
To help catalyze the university’s ambitious campaign, Alan McKim, DMSB’88, vice chair of the Board of Trustees and co-chair of the campaign, gifted $25 million to Northeastern to establish eight new endowed chairs in President Joseph E. Aoun’s name. McKim, who is the founder of Clean Harbors, said the gift is intended to honor Aoun’s visionary leadership.
$120
million raised in gifts and new pledges in FY2023, against a goal of $95 million
$763
million raised by Experience Powered by Northeastern toward its $1.3 billion campaign goal
Campaign priorities
Student opportunities
Scholarships, co-ops, and other experiential opportunities
Faculty excellence
Endowed professorships and other support
Research
Seed grants and technology development
Diverse and inclusive communities
Cultural centers, funding, and programming for underrepresented students
Entrepreneurship
Venture acceleration and seed funding, clubs, and creative intiatives
Global exploration
Study abroad, co-ops, and service learning
High-impact giving
12,374
first-time donors
26,593
individual donors
72
countries represented
612
corporations and foundations made $61,655,576 million in gifts and pledges
Experience Innovation
Creating pathways to STEM careers
As a STEM hub, Boston has workforce needs that continue to grow, and Northeastern’s Lowell Institute School is filling the talent pipeline by educating students who aspire to careers in some of the fastest growing fields. A $4 million gift from the Lowell Institute will award 100 scholarships annually to learners from diverse backgrounds—including first-generation and low-income students—who hold some college credit or an associate degree, empowering them to complete their bachelor’s degrees.
Mills College alumna elevates environmental research
To further environmental education, exploration, and action, Lauren Speeth, a Mills College alumna, and her fellow trustees at the Elfenworks Foundation have joined forces with Northeastern. The foundation repurposed endowments originally established at Mills to fund a co-op at Northeastern, which gives an undergraduate the opportunity to work alongside a faculty researcher in environmental studies. Elfenworks also made a new pledge to support students who pursue unpaid co-ops at environmentally focused nonprofits.
Family supports students in STEM
A biotech company founder and Northeastern parent focuses on cutting-edge scientific solutions every day. So, it’s no surprise that his daughter, a College of Science student, is targeting the same type of career for herself—and for others. With their daughter’s guidance, her parents have gifted a total of $2.25 million to create the AJC Undergraduate STEM Research Co-op and the AJC Graduate STEM Fellowship.
Supporting co-ops for career exploration
At Northeastern’s Marine Science Center, students on co-op study living organisms in their natural habitats, conduct research in areas like climate change and resilient ecosystems, and hone their scientific skills alongside faculty experts. To support these undergraduates exploring their career paths, an alumna passionate about environmental education has pledged $1.5 million through a bequest to establish a scholarship providing stipends to MSC co-op students.
Experience Breakthroughs
Investing in women’s entrepreneurship
In 2023, the Women Who Empower Innovator Awards granted a record $500,000 to 28 exemplary members of the Northeastern community to develop and advance their ideas, products, businesses, and brands. The program honors changemakers in a wide range of industries and interests through both funding and networks to help propel their efforts forward. Through generous philanthropic support, the Innovator Awards have bestowed more than $820,000 upon students and alumnae since 2021.
Unlocking the mysteries of brain function
Laurel Gabard-Durnam, director of Northeastern’s Plasticity in Neurodevelopment Lab, is leading a new research effort to study and improve how the human brain functions and performs. With a $3 million grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, her lab is building models to better predict the neurodevelopmental outcomes of individuals living in diverse economic conditions to help us understand the ways environments shape how we think and behave.
Investing in first-gen college students
Robert Murray, DMSB’66, and Christa Balzer have added $1 million to the Torch Scholarship bearing their names, strengthening Northeastern’s commitment to providing educational opportunities for students from diverse backgrounds. Since 2005, the Torch Scholars Program has awarded full tuition, room, and board, plus academic and social support to talented, driven undergraduates who have overcome exceptional odds, are the first in their families to attend college, and demonstrate potential for success.
Giving voice to racial histories
Through two grants, the Mellon Foundation is amplifying the work of Northeastern faculty, community archivists, and researchers in historical preservation and community engagement. A $1.5 million commitment to the university’s Reckonings Project trains community members in digital archiving, while $1 million for the Civil Rights and Restorative Justice Project expands its archive of historical racially motivated homicides alongside reparative justice work with victims’ descendants.
Experience Impact
Propelling student athletes to success
In 2021, the Northeastern University Rowing Association was founded to buoy men’s rowing and ensure the program’s success and competitiveness at a national level. Led by a group of dedicated rowing alumni, the association has raised more than $1.5 million through generous gifts. Its impact extends beyond the shell, backing team travel needs and recruitment efforts, and offering career counseling and mentorship support to student rowers and young alumni.
Giving Day smashes previous records
Northeastern’s Giving Day 2023 surpassed previous years in both the number of donors and dollars raised. Students, alumni, parents, employees, and friends supported student organizations, varsity and club sports, and individual schools and colleges. Over six years, Northeastern’s Giving Day has evolved into an exciting global effort, with the latest 24-hour celebration generating $3.2 million from more than 10,000 donors in 35 countries.
Global Leadership Summit goes to Ghana
Northeastern’s fourth Global Leadership Summit in Accra, Ghana, convened close to 300 alumni, parents, Young Global Leaders, trustees, students, and friends to exchange perspectives and plan positive change. The topics discussed included education, finance, entrepreneurship, leadership, civic engagement, music, and culture. Participants also donated generously to the Ghana Dialogue of Civilizations Fund, enabling students of color to partake in immersive learning experiences there.
Supporting our veterans and servicemembers
The Ruby W. and LaVon P. Linn Foundation sought to strengthen its $3 million pledge to the Linn Foundation Veteran and Active-Duty Servicemember Scholarship. So, it challenged Northeastern to raise an additional $1.5 million to secure the funds. Donors answering this call include Constantine Dakolias and Monique Cusson, PNT’26; Susan and Larry Deitch; the Dolce Family Foundation; Richard, DMSB’57, and Clare Lesser, L’84; and the Phi Gamma Pi Alumni Association.
Philanthropy fills pharmacist pipeline
Many scientific and medical companies need trained pharmacists with doctoral degrees to advance their work. Some of these companies employ philanthropy to support fellowships, honing pharmacists’ skills to fill their employment pipelines. Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Abbott Diabetes Care, Pacira BioSciences Inc., and Praxis Precision Medicines each sponsor these two-year fellowships at Northeastern, after which some PharmDs join them fulltime.
Our alumni and community network
314,426
alumni live and work in 186 countries
10,736
alumni from a total of 56 countries participated in 382 events in 2022–2023
50
Northeastern alumni communities on four continents, 27 of them in the U.S. and 23 based internationally
SUPPORT
GIFTING SELF-CARE TO OTHERS
In 2020, Mallory Gothelf, a 2017 College of Science graduate, felt the negative effects of the pandemic’s isolation. So, in April of that year, she channeled the entrepreneurial spirit instilled in her by Northeastern to start a self-care and wellness product gift box company, Find Your/self Boxes. Three years later, Gothelf has grown her business through word-of-mouth and a Good Morning America appearance, all while touring the country speaking on mental health awareness.
TRAILBLAZER
BROADCASTING A LEGACY
Nobody captures the spirit of radio like Donna Halper, ’69, ’70, ’73, who graduated with degrees in English and counseling, has throughout her broadcasting and academic career. Inducted into the Massachusetts Broadcaster’s Hall of Fame in 2023, Halper spun her first record in 1968 as WRBB’s first female DJ, and discovered one of rock and roll’s greatest acts, Rush. Since then, she has amplified the voices of women in media through countless lectures and publications.
INSPIRE
SHAPING EDUCATION IN AFRICA
Engineering graduate Mohamed Kante, ’12, has fully embraced Northeastern’s philosophy of global education. This past July, Kante’s company iNERDE celebrated a decade of supplying educational resources to children in Mali, allowing them to take advantage of new scholastic opportunities. Recently, iNERDE purchased virtual learning headsets for African students, making Kante’s nonprofit a beacon of encouragement in the eyes of students and parents.
INNOVATION
REVOLUTIONIZING A MARKET
Forging your own path in business isn’t as simple as D’Amore-McKim School of Business graduate Ye Tian, ’12, makes it seem. Last year, Tian decided to reinvent dating by opening a brick-and-mortar store in a predominantly online market—finding enough success that he plans to franchise more locations in Greater Boston. His store encourages couples to make crafts together and has caught the attention of The Boston Globe.
PERSEVERANCE
CHOREOGRAPHING HER SUCCESS
Since age four, Dawn Atkins, ’20, a College of Professional Studies graduate, has been dancing ballet and climbing the ranks—first training at local companies in her home state of Vermont, then joining the Boston Ballet Company in 2011. A decade later, after earning her degree through Northeastern’s Boston Ballet partnership, Atkins joined the Miami Ballet Company. This year, she became Principal Dancer, performing lead roles in iconic ballets like Giselle and The Nutcracker.
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Today, a vanguard of donors is driving Northeastern’s historic $1.3 billion campaign. With initiatives that span the globe, accelerating outcomes, we’re creating a better world right now. Learn more about our mission