ANN ARBOR—Interim President B. Joseph White announced today (July 18) that the University of Michigan will offer scholarships for undergraduate tuition to children of U-M graduates who died in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

White, who announced the scholarship program at the Board of Regents meeting, dedicated his term of service to the memories, families and friends of the U-M alumni who were killed in the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon when he accepted the interim presidency in November. His appointment began Jan. 1 and ends when Mary Sue Coleman, president of the University of Iowa, becomes the U-M’s 13th president Aug. 1. White, the Wilbur K.

Pierpont Collegiate Professor and former dean of the Business School, said, “With this scholarship, the University community joins me in honoring members of our Michigan family who died last September. We hope that this living memorial will bring some comfort to their survivors and assurance that we too remember and cherish the memory of those whose lives were lost. My hope is that some of their children will someday attend our great university.” The scholarships honor 18 U-M alumni who died in the terrorist attacks. Their families include 11 children ranging in age from several months to four years old. One of the widows, Jill Gartenberg, attended the Regents meeting, along with her daughters, Nicole and Jamie, and her mother-in-law, Lois. James M. Gartenberg, who earned an A.B. degree in economics from the U-M in 1987, was president of the U-M Alumni Club of New York for 12 years. He had resigned as club president to serve on the U-M’s National Library Leadership Council.

“My husband and I have always looked upon Michigan as an extended family. This scholarship program is consistent with our belief that the University values and supports its alumni and their families,” said Jill Gartenberg, who earned a B.A. degree in psychology from the U-M in 1989. “It is comforting to know that our children will have an opportunity to benefit from the excellent education Michigan has to offer. We appreciate Interim President Joe White’s interest in initiating this scholarship program for the families of the young alumni who were lost on Sept. 11. “Jim, who dedicated so much time to Michigan, would take great comfort in knowing that the University is reaching out to us,” added Gartenberg, who met her husband after graduation through the U-M Alumni Club of New York. “He would be honored to know of Michigan’s generosity,” she added. Other U-M alumni killed Sept. 11: David D. Alger (M.B.A. 1968), Yeneneh Betru (M.D. 1995), Brian P. Dale, (J.D. 1991), Paul Friedman (M.S.E. 1983), Steven Goldstein (A.B. 1988), Darya Lin (B.S.E.I.O 1991), Todd Ouida (B.A. 1998), Laurence Polatsch (A.B. 1990), Stephen Poulos (M.Mus. 1978), Gregory Richards (A.B. 1992), Josh Rosenthal (A.B. 1979), Christina Ryook (B.S. 1998), Meta Fuller (Higginbothan) Waller (B.G.S. 1973), Scott Weingard (B.B.A. 1993), Meredith L. Whalen (B.B.A. 2000), and Marc Scott Zeplin (M.B.A. 1993). Manish Patel, who also died Sept. 11, will be awarded a B.S. degree posthumously Aug. 16.

For more information about U-M alumni who died, visit the Alumni Association’s “Alumni Memorial” at http://www.umich.edu/~umalumni/connect.html The U-M’s Office of Financial Aid will administer the scholarships, which will be financed from non-General Fund presidential discretionary monies set aside and invested to grow for this purpose. The scholarships will cover undergraduate tuition in any of the U-M’s undergraduate programs and will be available to admitted first-year and transfer students for as long as they maintain satisfactory progress toward completion of their degrees. Students who have received an undergraduate degree from another institution will not be eligible. Pamela W. Fowler, director of the Office of Financial Aid, said the scholarships will be registered in the national database Sept. 11 Scholarship Alliance, organized by a consortium of scholarship organizations. Although the total value of the scholarship program is difficult to project, tuition for first-year Michigan residents was $6,935 in 2001-2002. First-year non-Michigan residents paid $21,645 for two terms last year.

Related Links:

• B. Joseph White
• Board of Regents
• James M. Gartenberg