FAU receives $2 million gift for first-generation scholars
The endowment will support mentoring, networking and career development for students in the Kelly/Strul Emerging Scholars Program.
Key Takeaways
- •The Gary Peters Family Foundation gift establishes the Cecilia's Heart First-Generation Enrichment Endowment Fund.
- •FAU says the fund will support mentoring, student recognition and professional development.
- •The Kelly/Strul program has 83 current scholars and 96 alumni, according to the university.
Florida Atlantic University has received a $2 million gift from the Gary Peters Family Foundation to establish an endowment for mentoring and professional development for first-generation students in its Kelly/Strul Emerging Scholars Program.
The new Cecilia's Heart First-Generation Enrichment Endowment Fund will support student recognition, networking, résumé sessions and mentoring, the university announced Oct. 27. It is named for Cecilia Peters, a program board member and longtime supporter.
The gift adds to a program that already combines financial assistance with services intended to help students complete college and prepare for careers. FAU said the new endowment is directed to enrichment and professional development, rather than announcing new tuition scholarships.
Support beyond tuition
Founded in 2017, Kelly/Strul serves first-generation students eligible for federal Pell Grants. FAU says scholars receive financial aid packages covering tuition, housing, books and meals, alongside mentoring, financial literacy, internship opportunities and career-readiness support.
The program is intended to give participants a path to graduate debt-free in four years or less. Its founders include Boca Raton philanthropists Aubrey and Sally Strul and FAU President Emeritus John Kelly and his wife, Carolyn.
According to the university, planned uses for the endowment include a recognition program for students pursuing academic and career goals, as well as networking sessions, etiquette dinners and a Dine with the Dean event. These activities are intended to strengthen services around the existing financial aid package.
Peters has supported the program since its founding, FAU said. The university describes her role as welcoming incoming students at her home and hosting a student-led book club.
A growing first-generation cohort
FAU said the program has 83 current scholars and 96 alumni. It welcomed a fall cohort of 30 first-generation, Pell-eligible students, its largest incoming class, after starting with four students in its first class.
The university says Kelly/Strul graduates have entered fields including engineering, business, medicine, higher education and sports management, while others have pursued graduate degrees. These are alumni paths reported by FAU, not a guarantee of an outcome for future scholars.
The new commitment follows other philanthropic support. In 2022, FAU announced a separate $6.4 million gift from an anonymous donor for Kelly/Strul. That earlier gift is distinct from the Gary Peters Family Foundation's $2 million endowment announced this week.
FAU says roughly one-quarter of its more than 32,000 undergraduate and graduate students are the first in their families to graduate from college, and 40% are Pell-eligible. The Kelly/Strul fund focuses on a smaller group within that broader student population.
For program participants, the new endowment is intended to sustain opportunities to build professional relationships and prepare for work alongside their academic studies. FAU lists additional program information on the Kelly/Strul Emerging Scholars website.
