Bloomberg Commits $1.8 Billion to Johns Hopkins for Financial Aid
Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore has announced a $1.8 billion commitment from alumnus and former New York City mayor Michael R. Bloomberg ('64) in support of undergraduate financial aid.
The largest-ever gift to an academic institution in America will enable Johns Hopkins to permanently commit to a need-blind admissions policy and ensure unparalleled educational opportunities for the next generation of global leaders. Starting in the fall of 2019, the university will begin offering no-loan financial aid packages, replacing loans with scholarships; currently, 44 percent of Johns Hopkins students graduate with some form of loan debt, with the average amount more than $24,000. Johns Hopkins also will reduce the amount that middle- and low-income families who qualify for financial aid have to pay toward their child's education; provide comprehensive student support for first-generation and lower-income students, including increased recruitment efforts, programs, and support for research experiences, internships, and study abroad opportunities; and increase its enrollment of low-income students who qualify for federal Pell Grants, with the goal of building a more socioeconomically diverse student body...