News
Couple’s gift will help undergraduates pursue research
Archived article from Sep 20, 2004
By Greg Trevor
Jerome and Lorraine Aresty, longtime supporters of Rutgers, have pledged $5 million to enhance undergraduate research and Jewish Studies at the university and to improve facilities for honors students and student athletes.
Jerome, a 1951 Rutgers College graduate, and Lorraine Aresty have earmarked $4 million of their latest donation toward establishing a program that encourages undergraduates to work with faculty on original research projects. Rutgers will provide matching resources for the undergraduate research program, to be administered by Rutgers College.
“Lorraine and Jerry are truly wonderful people with whom I have developed a special relationship,” said Rutgers College Dean Carl Kirschner. “I admire them for their caring, thoughtfulness and unwavering commitment to supporting the potential in Rutgers’ students. Equally important, their vision to establish Rutgers’ first comprehensive undergraduate research program will enable Rutgers to move toward making research-based learning the standard. The Arestys recognize that at a public research university, connecting accomplished faculty members with bright undergraduates beyond the confines of the classroom in the process of inquiry and discovery is crucial to a high-quality education and future success.”
The Arestys’ commitment also includes financial support to complete a state-of-the-art amphitheater at Rutgers’ new Football Complex, renovate an honors seminar room at Brett Hall and enhance an existing endowment established by the Arestys at the Allen and Joan Bildner Center for the Study of Jewish Life.
This pledge brings to $7 million the total amount contributed by the Arestys to the university’s recently completed six-year, $615 million fund-raising campaign.
With their past contributions, the Arestys have established The Jerome and Lorraine Aresty Scholarship, which supports merit-based scholarships for 20 Rutgers College students, and The Jerome and Lorraine Aresty Undergraduate Research Scholarship, which supports 24 Rutgers College students as Henry Rutgers Scholars. They also have supported the Class of 1951 Reunion Campaign and endowed scholarships for Rutgers students who compete in Olympic sports.
“Through their tremendous generosity over the years, Jerry and Lorraine Aresty have touched the lives of countless Rutgers students,” said President Richard L. McCormick. “Their most recent gift will create a unique offering from New Jersey’s foremost public-research university – an exciting, new opportunity for students as early as their first year at Rutgers to pursue research projects with our esteemed faculty.”
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