$10 Million Each for International Students and Healthcare Entrepreneurship
A pair of $10 million gifts from University alumni will bolster the college experience for international students and aspiring healthcare entrepreneurs beginning this fall.
In May, Daniel Sundheim W’99 and his wife Brett Sundheim C’01 gave $9 million to create the Sundheim International Scholars Fund, which will provide scholarship aid for international students at Penn Arts & Sciences with demonstrated financial need, and an additional $1 million to launch the Sundheim Penn First Plus International Opportunity Fund. That fund will provide resources for experiences including summer internships, research programs, and academic courses for international students who are also involved in Penn First Plus (P1P), Penn’s hub to support students who are the first in their families to pursue a four-year baccalaureate degree or come from modest financial circumstances.
“Brett and I recognize that even with significant financial aid, certain elements of the Penn undergraduate experience will remain out of reach for aided international students,” Daniel Sundheim, founder and chief investment officer of the global investment firm D1 Capital, said in the release. “That’s why we established the Sundheim P1P International Opportunity Fund to help eligible students afford to participate in the kinds of important out-of-the-classroom experiences that so meaningfully augment a Penn education.”
The Sundheims previously supported student financial aid at Penn by establishing the Sundheim Family Scholarship in 2009. They have both served on the board of advisors at Penn’s Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA), where they’ve also endowed the Daniel and Brett Sundheim Chief Curator position.
“Attracting the most talented students from around the globe and providing the resources for them to thrive, regardless of their financial situations, is a key priority for Penn,” University President Liz Magill said. “We are extraordinarily grateful to Brett and Dan Sundheim for their shared commitment to increasing educational access and the impact they will have on generations of students.”
The following month, Magill and Wharton Dean Erika James announced a $10 million gift to establish the Robin S. Wolpow and Marc B. Wolpow W’80 Fund for Healthcare Entrepreneurship at Venture Lab, Penn’s center for student entrepreneurship housed inside Tangen Hall on 40th and Sansom Streets.
The Wolpows’ gift, facilitated through the Arbour Way Foundation (which the Wolpows established to support health equity, educational opportunity, reproductive rights, and environmental defense), will “provide the resources for students and faculty to develop, test, and scale more of their innovative ideas to have a long-lasting impact on healthcare,” Magill said. “It will spur the launch of startups that will make a meaningful difference in the lives of patients and the broader community.”
With the gift, Venture Lab will invite executives with experience in entrepreneurship to lead a healthcare vertical and provide insights to students through events, workshops, and internships. The gift will also fund case studies, research, a dedicated course, and an acceleration lab enabling students to examine alumni ventures and undertake consulting projects.
“Robin and I want to provide an enduring platform that catalyzes collaboration and allows budding entrepreneurs and students to push the boundaries of what is possible and bring their most audacious ideas to life,” said Marc Wolpow, cochief executive officer and cofounder of Audax Group, an alternative investment manager, and an emeritus member of Wharton’s Undergraduate Executive Board.
The Wolpows have previously strengthened creative programs at Penn through several initiatives, including the RealArts Internship Fund, the Creative Ventures Fund, and the Wolpow Family Support Fund. They’ve also established the Wolpow Family Endowed Scholarship for undergraduate students at Wharton and the Wolpow Family Faculty Scholar Award for junior faculty at the School. Their daughter, Nina W. Rosborough C’14, currently serves on the advisory board for Kelly Writers House.