website: http://www.caltech.edu/

Lew and Edie Wasserman became involved with Caltech in 1968 when Lew accepted an invitation from then-Institute President Lee DuBridge to participate in the President’s Council, a network of the nation’s leaders in technology, business, and industry. Lew graciously accepted, writing that “any project whose objective is to stimulate and foster meaningful dialogue between the business community and the groves of academe, both student and faculty, will always have my wholehearted endorsement and enthusiastic support….” In April 1971, a letter from Arnold Beckman, noted chemist and chairman of Caltech’s Board of Trustees, welcomed Lew as a Trustee. In 1972, Lew and Edie became Life Members of the Caltech Associates, a group of entrepreneurs, community leaders, Caltech alumni, philanthropists, and faculty who provide financial support to Caltech and are offered a wide range of stimulating educational trips, tours, and programs.

For several years, the Wassermans donated to the Institute, but funds remained in a “to be designated” account while they determined just the right program for their support. As a result, in 1976, the Caltech Prize Fund (later named the Upperclass Merit Award) was established. This scholarship fund was indeed a novel one. Most scholarships at the time were allocated to those students with financial need, but the Wassermans’ scholarship was intended to reward students’ meritorious performance, regardless of their financial need, thus providing support to a whole new group of students and providing incentives for performance. In addition, during the early years of the fund, the Wassermans permitted some of the money to be used to help establish the Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) program, a distinct research program modeled on the grant-seeking process. SURF gave students the opportunity to become deeply involved in scientific research with a faculty mentor from the Caltech/JPL community for the summer. It turned out to be a solid investment - SURF is still in existence today and serves over 400 students a year. In 1981, the Wassermans made another significant gift to the Institute, endowing a professorship in the social sciences. In 1993, they provided funding to endow their second scholarship at Caltech, called the Wasserman Student Aid Fund, this one for students with financial need.

For information on how to become a Wasserman Scholar, you must contact the school’s admissions office directly.