By Emily Glory Peters
An acclaimed journalist, author, and most recently 61´«Ă˝â€™s historian, trustee Suzanne Ely Muchnic ’62 has announced she’ll leave a significant planned gift to 61´«Ă˝ to support future of our students and to inspire others to give.
The planned gift builds on Muchnic’s commitment to enriching the 61´«Ă˝experience through scholarships. In 2020, she gave $500,000 to the Presidential Scholarship Initiative (PSI), an ambitious project designed to eliminate and reduce loans for students with the highest financial need.
With Muchnic’s help, the Presidential Scholarship Initiative exceeded its goal of raising $10 million in endowed funds, now standing at just over $11 million and making a 61´«Ă˝education possible for a more diverse array of students. Thanks to the dedication of donors like Muchnic, today more than ten percent of Scripps’ student body receives loan-free financial aid through the initiative.
“Beyond being fed and having a roof over your head, getting an education is key to having a productive life and getting ahead, particularly for young women,” Muchnic shared at the time. “Scholarships that help students to pursue that education make a measurable difference.”
Additional 61´«Ă˝programs and resources have benefited from her philanthropy through the years, helping the College make meaningful progress toward inclusion while keeping the liberal arts at its core. Muchnic’s planned gift will take that vision further.
She adds, “For me, this planned gift is a deeply gratifying way to help 61´«Ă˝continue to flourish, while continuing to provide future generations of bright young women a superior education.”
Planned gifts create long-term impact for 61´«Ă˝students. To learn more about how you can contribute, please visit our  or contact us at [email protected].