Heroes Among Us
They’re out there. Bright, motivated students full of promise, ready to change the world. The only thing holding them back is financial need. By donating to scholarships, you can help students prepare for the future. The University of Chicago Odyssey Scholarship Program unleashes their potential by giving them access to a need-blind, loan-free education at one of the world’s top universities.
Odyssey support has the power to open doors.
Make
a gift at any level.
Special Initiatives to Support the Odyssey Scholarship Program
In honor of President Robert J. Zimmer, members of the UChicago Board of Trustees have donated
$105 million to the Odyssey Scholarship Program, the University’s flagship financial aid program
for undergraduate students with the greatest financial need. They have also challenged the
University community—alumni, parents, and friends—to join them in their support of Odyssey
through the Trustee Odyssey Challenge.
The aim, a combined $200 million in new endowment, will double the current size of the Odyssey
endowment and will support hundreds of Odyssey Scholars each year, in perpetuity.
How to Join the Trustee Odyssey Challenge
Establish your own named, endowed Odyssey Scholarship Fund or add to your existing Odyssey
Scholarship Fund with a gift or pledged commitment (payable up to five years) of $250,000 or
more.
Arley D. Cathey, PhB’50, a dedicated UChicagoan, believed the bowties he wore made a statement.
Yet he may have made his biggest statement with his final gift to the University: a bequest to
expand access to the University he loved.
$20 million of Cathey’s bequest will support immediate-use Odyssey Scholarships. To further
extend the impact of his generous gift, that $20 million will also drive the Cathey Odyssey
Challenge, to inspire the University community to raise an additional $20 million.
The Cathey Odyssey Challenge aims to make an immediate impact in support of Odyssey Scholars in
the College today. The $40 million total in current-use funds will support approximately 1,000
one-year, full- and partial-tuition Odyssey Scholarships over the course of the challenge.
How to Join the Cathey Odyssey Challenge
Your current-use gift of $25,000 or more in support of Odyssey Scholarships will be matched
one-to-one by Cathey Odyssey Scholarship funds, doubling the impact of your gift. A $25,000
Odyssey Scholarship gift matched with $25,000 in Cathey funds will provide approximately one
year of full tuition for an Odyssey Scholar.
For more information about Odyssey, the Cathey Odyssey Challenge, and the Trustee Odyssey Challenge, contact Ryan Meczywor at rmeczywor@uchicago.edu or 773.702.6995.
Making Journeys Possible
The Odyssey Scholarship Program would not exist without heroes like you!
18,400+
Odyssey Scholarship donors
5,600+
Lives changed by Odyssey Scholarships
Join the Team of Heroes
Odyssey Scholars have the talent and the drive. Odyssey Scholarship donors have the power to create opportunity. By donating to scholarships, you help students become an unstoppable force for our future.
