Your generosity can change lives by providing students the financial support they need to achieve their dreams. By investing in scholarships, you make education accessible, empower the next generation, and leave a lasting legacy.

As we mark the installation of President Marlene Tromp, UVM's 28th president, providing an outstanding experience for our students remains our highest priority.

Yet, for many students, the cost of attendance can be a significant barrier.Scholarships change this reality. When students receive financial support, they can focus on academics, engage in research and internships, and graduate prepared to contribute to their communities.

We hope you'll consider marking this occasion by making a gift to the UVM Scholarship Fund and joining Dr. Tromp in her steadfast commitment to student opportunity and success at UVM.

A Life Transformed Because of Scholarships

Anka Delos Reyes '28 is a first-generation college student at the Grossman School of Business, studying Business Administration. Just starting her second year, she's already thriving in and outside of the classroom.

But the journey to get here was anything but easy.

A few years ago, Anka and her mother relocated to a small town in northeastern Tennessee for her mother’s work as a registered nurse. “We started completely from scratch,” Anka recalls. “Just the two of us, four suitcases, and a lot of uncertainty.”

After graduating high school, Anka chose to delay college for two years to help her mother and find her own footing. She worked to help the family's finances - but she never stopped trying to figure out how she was going to build her future.

It wasn't too long until she was ready to pursue higher education. How to afford college was the great obstacle standing in her way. 

Thanks to donor-funded scholarship support, Anka was able to step toward making her dream a reality by coming to UVM.

Now at UVM, Anka is embracing every opportunity to grow.

She’s not only gaining an education that will prepare her for a future career, but she’s also building community across campus. She’s involved with the Women and Gender Equity (WAGE) Center, serves as an analyst for the Catamount Innovation Fund, and is a member of the Grossman Student Advisory Committee.

She’s been able to do this because she's an extraordinary and motivated person. But it is scholarship donors who brought this extraordinary person to join our community of Catamounts at UVM.

When reflecting on the impact scholarships have made on her time here, Anka says, “I’ve been able to focus fully on my studies without the constant weight of financial strain.”

Through it all, Anka remains deeply grateful for the people who supported her along the way - the mentors who believed in her, the donors whose generosity made her education possible, and most of all, her mother.

A scholarship recipient Paying it forward

During his time at UVM, Andrew Bowen ’15, like so many students today, had a lot on his plate. Raised by a single mother after his parents separated early in his life, Andrew and his family did everything they could to make attending college possible on one income.

He juggled three work-study jobs while also waiting tables several nights a week. Despite his limited time, he remained committed to his studies and was active in the Student Government Association. Even with all his efforts, the financial strain was a daily struggle.

But everything changed the summer before his senior year, when he learned he had received scholarship support.

“Immediately, it was hugely impactful for me,” Andrew recalls. “It almost covered my entire tuition for senior year and the university health insurance I needed to purchase. It made a massive difference.”

That scholarship didn’t just lighten the load – it changed his life.

Years later, with a successful career and deep appreciation for the opportunities that scholarship support had provided, Andrew and his wife made an incredible decision: to pay it forward.

They established a scholarship of their own to support a UVM student who, like Andrew once did, needs a helping hand as they strive to build a better life.

Now working in higher education, Andrew says, “I see the impact of scholarship and philanthropy on students’ lives every single day. As someone who benefited from that generosity, it was a no-brainer. If we can make the same impact on one student that someone once made on me, that’s invaluable.”

Their goal is to help at least one student now and eventually expand that impact even further.

Andrew also hopes other alumni will join him in making a difference for students, in whatever way they can.

To the generation of alumni who came before him and helped him find his own way through their support for scholarships, Andrew says, “I would just say thank you so much for all the giving you have done. And if there's anything more you can give, it enables our institution to thrive far into the future.”

Andrew and his wife are committed to supporting the new generation of students for years to come – especially as federal and other funding sources become increasingly less secure.

Access today. Impact for a lifetime.

Welcoming a new president is about what we make possible - together - for students. Your support today honors President Marlene Tromp and opens doors across UVM for more students to succeed.

Join us by making a gift or pledge today.