The primary goal of this campaign is to increase t he endowed funds supporting our students and faculty, making certain that Penn State continues to achieve excellence in its mission of teaching, research, and public service to Pennsylvania and the rest of our country. As we approach the halfway point of the Grand Destiny Campaign, I am pleased to report that your contributions have already started making a difference in the College of Engineering. Response to the campaign has been overwhelming. Your generosity has impacted all walks of Engineering.
More scholarships are available to our undergraduate engineering students now than ever before.
Three times as many students today hold scholarships in our College as the number awarded three short years ago. This is due to the fact that gifts to Engineering have allowed the total endowed scholarship awards to increase nearly five-fold over the past six years. And not only are we able to give out more scholarships today, but the size of the scholarships has increased. Our graduate students are also benefiting from increased support. In the past five years, fellowship aid, a key tool in our ability to recruit and retain some of the brightest young minds available, increased by more than 80 percent.