Penn president and husband donate $2 million for nursing scholars program at the university

University of Pennsylvania President Amy Gutmann and her husband have donated $2 million to the nursing school to establish leadership scholarships for undergraduates and graduates, the university announced Tuesday night.

Ten scholars, both graduate and undergraduate, will be selected annually, beginning in January. Chief criteria for selection include diversity, high academic achievement, leadership potential, be a first-generation college student, and a desire to work in urban and rural communities, the university said.

Gutmann said the country and world need more nurses and nursing leaders.

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“Serving on the front lines of healthcare, they are heroes in the effort to contain and defeat the COVID-19 virus," she said in a statement. "They are also key to making high-quality healthcare both universal and affordable. Michael and I want to do our part to support the most talented and diverse nursing students who are eager to serve in urban and rural areas that need them most.”

With the new gift, Gutmann and her husband, Michael W. Doyle, a Columbia University professor in the school of international and public affairs, have given $4.5 million to Penn, the school said. Other donations have supported scholarships for students with financial need and research opportunities for undergraduates.

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Gutmann, who has led the Ivy League university since 2004 and whose current contract runs through June 2022, was the fourth-highest paid private college president in the country in 2017, earning about $3 million in total compensation, according to the Chronicle of Higher Education.