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February 2005
On Tuesday, February 8, Casey Wasserman, CEO of Wasserman Media Group, visited campus to meet the five current recipients of the Lew and Edie Wasserman Endowed Scholarship at Brandeis. Established in 1978 by Lew Wasserman, longtime president and CEO of MCA/Universal Studios, and his wife, Edie, the Wasserman Scholarship has assisted hundreds of Brandeis students from middle-class backgrounds for more than 25 years, making it one of the most influential scholarships in the University’s history.
Since his grandfather’s passing in 2002, Casey Wasserman has been carrying on his family’s tradition of philanthropy, and is traveling the country to get to know the young men and women whose college educations are being supported by the Wasserman Foundation. Currently, the Foundation provides need-based scholarships to students at Brandeis, Georgetown, CalTech, UCLA, CalArts, and Tisch School of the Arts at NYU.
Over dinner at the Faculty Club, hosted by Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs Marty Krauss ’81 and former Wasserman Scholar and Associate Director of Student Financial Services Sherri Culp ’95, the five students thanked Mr. Wasserman and discussed their experiences at Brandeis and the sense of warmth and welcome that first attracted them to the University and has stayed with them ever since. Zack Friedman ’05 stated, “Now, when I see prospective students walking around campus, I try to be as welcoming and helpful to them as so many people were to me when I was considering coming here.”
Casey and the scholarship recipients at the Faculty Club dinner
Mr. Wasserman then spoke to the students about his grandparents and their intentions when they created the scholarships, saying, “It is so important for you to develop lasting relationships with each another, the [Wasserman] students at other institutions, and former [Wasserman] scholars.” He went on to express his hope that they and Brandeis could help lead the way in the creation of the network of current and former Wasserman Scholars that his grandparents envisioned. Offering them his personal email address, he volunteered to assist them in connecting with former Wasserman Scholars and business associates who could help them achieve their goals for the future.
Casey with one of the Brandeis scholarship recipients
Mr. Wasserman and the Wasserman Foundation have recently pledged an additional $500,000 to the Lew and Edie Wasserman Endowed Scholarship at Brandeis.
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