Pitt's $3 billion campaign is the most ambitious in its 239-year history
From the moment the University of Pittsburgh was founded in a log cabin in 1787, we’ve done more than imagine what’s possible — we’ve made it into reality.
From first-generation-student success stories to lifesaving discoveries to hands-on research that shapes industries and communities, at the University of Pittsburgh, we don’t leave possible to chance.
By putting the right people in the right place with the right support, we make the unbelievable a matter of fact.
Now, as we celebrate the 100th anniversary of breaking ground on the Cathedral of Learning, we’re rising to the occasion once again. Pitt has launched a $3 billion fundraising campaign, Proving Possible, to spur and support transformative ideas and drive success across the University.
At its core, our Proving Possible campaign is about undergirding the promise of all that is possible at Pitt. It is about taking action and driving impact.
Proving Possible is the most ambitious campaign in Pitt’s 239-year history.
When Chancellor Joan Gabel publicly announced its launch on Sept. 25, 2026, the University already had received thousands of gifts supporting the campaign’s defining pillars, contributing more than $1.4 billion toward its $3 billion goal.
Here we introduce some of the alumni and friends who are investing in this campaign and helping to define what’s possible at Pitt. We also introduce the pillars of Proving Possible, aimed at closing the gap between what is and what’s next.
Those four broad areas are:
Accelerate Student Success
We’re committed to expanding scholarship offerings; providing greater access to tutoring, mentorship and learning both in and out of the classroom; and enhancing each of our campuses, where lifelong connections take root.
David C. Frederick, Trustee (A&S ’83, FHC ’83)
The University’s first Rhodes scholar, trustee David C. Frederick has argued more than 60 cases before the U.S. Supreme Court and in appellate courts throughout the nation.
In 2022, his transformational gift led to the naming of the David C. Frederick Honors College, a catalyst to its becoming one of the top honors colleges in the country. The gift also forever links Pitt with the University of Oxford to offer enhanced exchange opportunities between the two institutions.
Additional support from Frederick and his wife, Sophia Lynn, funds Pitt students engaged in summer internships that promote public service, research and self-discovery.
“My hope is that by providing additional resources, students in all kinds of fields can be ex-posed to exciting international study experiences and public service opportunities,” Frederick says. “By relieving some of the financial stresses on students, we can enable them to explore new possibilities for how they can lead impactful lives.”
Michael Rees (A&S ’97, ENGR ’97, FHC ’97)
Michael Rees credits the first dean of Pitt’s honors college with inspiring him to think boldly and dream big.
Rees earned a Goldwater Scholarship and went on to a career in business, eventually running his own investment firm. He currently is co-president of Blue Owl Capital Inc.
In 2025, Rees and his family created the Rees-Chancellor’s Scholars Program in the Frederick Honors College. The program expands the number of full tuition and room and board scholarships available to honors college students and provides them with support for experiential learning opportunities. His investment also provides the college with a strategic focus to enhance the University’s recruitment of the most qualified students.
“I look back at all I have done in my life and where I’ve been able to go, and it all started at Pitt,” Rees says. “It means a lot to me to be able to give back to my alma mater and support new generations of students who will have the skills and motivation to change the world.”
Tracey Travis (ENGR ’83)
At the age of 16, Tracey Travis was interning in the computer science department at the Eastman Kodak Company. A year later, she was an engineering student at the University of Pittsburgh.
Her first stop after college was at General Motors, followed by some of the most well-known global brands, including Pepsi, Victoria’s Secret and Ralph Lauren.
She retired as executive vice president and chief financial officer of The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. She has served on numerous corporate boards, including those of Meta, The Campbell’s Company, Hyatt Corporation and Accenture.
Travis served on Pitt’s Board of Trustees; is a Swanson School of Engineering Distinguished Alumni Award recipient; mentors Pitt students; and created the Tracey T. Travis Endowed Scholarship, which supports deserving engineering students.
“Pitt was where it all started, and I believe I have a responsibility to give back. The real benefit for me will be to see the students who receive the scholarship get their degree and have re-warding careers, as I have had.”
Abhishek Mehta (BUS ’05)
As the founder of Blue Lotus Investment Fund, Abhishek Mehta serves on the Chancellor’s Global Advisory Committee and the Pitt Business Board of Visitors.
His commitment to giving stems from his father, an immigrant who prioritized helping others even while facing early financial hardships.
To honor that legacy, Mehta created the Shashikala and Kishor S. Mehta Scholarship in the School of Business to help students with financial need.
“I hope my contributions are a bottle of Gatorade in someone’s education/life marathon,” Mehta says.
Kirsten Albert (BUS ’01)
Kirsten Albert is an audit partner at PwC with more than 25 years of experience advising senior executives and boards of public companies.
She has stayed closely connected to her alma mater, serving as PwC’s firm relationship partner for the University of Pittsburgh.
Albert also serves on the board of The Neighborhood Academy, a local middle and high school dedicated to breaking the cycle of generational poverty by preparing students for college and citizenship.
She recently created the Bright Futures Scholarship in the School of Business to help Pittsburgh-area students overcome financial barriers and pursue careers in business.
“My Pitt education changed the course of my life,” Albert says, “and I’m honored to help make that same opportunity possible for others.”
Advance Scholarship, Creativity and Innovation
We’ll give Pitt’s best thinkers the time, space and resources they need to study, teach and pursue research most effectively. What we learn will be shared with the world and translated into powerful results.
Robert Hernandez, Trustee Emeritus (A&S ’66)
Trustee emeritus Robert “Bob” Hernandez began his career at U.S. Steel Corporation, ultimately rising to vice chair and chief financial officer. After his retirement from U.S. Steel (at the time named USX), Hernandez served on several corporate boards, including stints with TYCO Electronics, Chubb, Eastman Chemical Company, RTI International Metals and BlackRock’s equity and bond mutual funds.
Hernandez also served on UPMC’s board of trustees for 20 years, most of that time as chair of the finance committee. Hernandez’s service on the University Board of Trustees began in 2002, and he was named a Distinguished Alumni Fellow for his exceptional dedication.
Hernandez, who now is partnered with Karen Blumen (A&S ’75, LAW ’79), a longtime adjunct professor in Pitt’s School of Social Work, created the endowed Georgia C. Hernandez Chair in Immunology and Autoimmune Regulations, which honors his late wife, and the Selma N. Hernandez Endowed Merit Scholarship Fund, which honors his late mother and has provided scholarship support to more than 60 students.
“Medical breakthroughs take time, gifted and dedicated researchers, and philanthropic support,” Hernandez says. “I know that the resources committed to Pitt will make a difference.”
Thomas (A&S ’76) and Mary Beth Richards, Trustee (A&S ’78, SCI ’78)
While building successful professional careers, trustee Mary Beth Richards and her late husband, Thomas E. Richards (A&S ’76), always kept close ties with Pitt.
Tom served as chair of the Pitt Board of Trustees. Together for nearly 50 years, they made gifts supporting the University. In fulfilling Tom’s wishes, Mary Beth also made generous gifts benefiting the men’s basketball program and cancer research. In recognition, UPMC Hillman Cancer Center named an auditorium and a distinguished lectureship in memory of Tom, and the Petersen Events Center lobby was renamed in honor of their family.
Recently, Mary Beth made a planned gift of life insurance to provide scholarship support for undergraduates, fulfilling the third priority in her three-legged stool of giving. This gift will provide generations of students with access to a world-class education.
“Whether your passion is academics, athletics or medicine, your generosity strengthens one leg of the stool while also supporting the entire University,” Richards says. “Together, we ensure this three-legged stool remains balanced, resilient and strong. Our family believes the next generation is the key to tackling humanity’s greatest challenges, and there is no better place to invest in the future than the University of Pittsburgh.”
Christopher J. Valasek (SCI ’05) and Sara A. Jackson (MED ’05)
Christopher Valasek is vice president of security engineering at Hims & Hers Health, Inc. Previously, he worked in the self-driving auto industry. His wife, Sara Jackson (MED ‘05), is senior director of clinical development at Exact Sciences Corporation, whose mission is to eradicate cancer and the suffering it causes.
Chris and Sara think as boldly with their philanthropy as they do in their careers. They support the Basketball Performance Center, which brings together Pitt’s long histories in athletics and medical innovation, and a gathering space in the Petersen Events Center is named in their honor.
They also give to the School of Computing and Information’s Catalyst Fund, which allows the dean to support emerging ideas.
“In computer science, medicine and sports, you must think big and sometimes take big risks if you want to be a leader. We believe Pitt is the right place and now is the right time to direct our philanthropy to have the biggest impact well beyond Pittsburgh.”
Cultivate Community, Partnership and Impact
What began as a deep commitment to our city now reaches across the commonwealth and beyond through partnerships that improve lives and strengthen the world around us. The University proudly serves as an economic and intellectual engine for the region, and our 380,000 alumni carry the Pitt banner around the globe.
Eva Tansky Blum, Trustee Emerita (A&S ’70, LAW ’73), and Burt Tansky (A&S ’61)
After graduating with a degree in history, the late Burt Tansky had a storied career in retail management, including serving in the role of CEO of Neiman Marcus. Trustee emerita Eva Tansky Blum, Burt’s sister, is a standout graduate both for her successful career and for her volunteer and financial support of the University.
Eva was president of the Pitt Alumni Association and the first woman to chair Pitt’s Board of Trustees. Both Burt and Eva were named Distinguished Alumni Fellows. Their most recent gift was made in memory of Burt by Eva and by the Rita and Burt Tansky Foundation and supports student experiential learning and technology-rich spaces within the library.
To honor the family, a section of the University’s newly renovated Hillman Library was named the Tansky Family Commons, echoing a similar space at the William Pitt Union.
“My brother had a passion for Pitt that knew no bounds, and I was right there with him,” Eva says. “We have always been enthusiastic about moving Pitt to the next level — doing what we can to ensure that anything is possible at Pitt for the students, researchers, faculty and staff.”
Lucy Fato (A&S ’88, LAW ’91)
Luciana “Lucy” Fato recently joined Vantage Risk, a property and casualty insurance and reinsurance company under Howard Hughes Holdings, as general counsel. She previously served as general counsel and corporate secretary of Seaport Entertainment Group and held senior legal roles at AIG, where she served as vice chair and general counsel, S&P Global, Marsh McLennan, and Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP.
A strong proponent of pro bono work, she won the Arthur Liman Public Interest Award and was named a Legend in the Law by the Burton Awards.
She encourages others to commit their time in a similar fashion. She recently established the Criminal Justice Fellows Fund in the Pitt School of Law and the Law, Criminal Justice and Society Fellows Fund in the Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences, which supports students pursuing summer internships or research projects with partners such as the Pennsylvania Innocence Project and Neighborhood Legal Services.
“Supporting my alma mater is an honor,” Fato says. “Doing it in a way that empowers the next generation of lawyers to be advocates committed to fairness and access to justice makes it even more rewarding.”
It’s Possible at Pitt
We have a history of making the impossible possible. From medical technology development in outer space to making a more accessible world for veterans, we’re fueling research, powering discoveries and advancing work that enhances well-being for everyone.
Richard King Mellon Foundation
The Richard King Mellon Foundation made the largest single-project investment in its now-79-year history to help launch BioForge at the University of Pittsburgh. BioForge’s mission is to accelerate innovation and breakthroughs in the manufacturing of precision medicines to speed their delivery, use and impact.
The promise and potential of biologics — precision medicines that are designed to recruit your body’s own capabilities to heal — are to make treatments accessible and affordable enough to reach every patient who needs them.
“By learning to make these precision medicines in less time, more efficiently and cost-effectively, we hope to create greater access to these life-changing medicines for the millions of people who could benefit from them,” says Richard King Mellon Foundation Director Sam Reiman. “The foundation is making a historic bet on Pittsburgh to lead nationally in the life sciences.”
Orland Bethel
Orland Bethel, founder of one of the nation’s largest egg producers, Hillandale Farms, began his relationship with Pitt seeking relief from debilitating back pain. He is now one of the University’s most generous lifelong donors. Successful surgery inspired him and the Orland Bethel Family Foundation to help others by establishing an endowed chair followed by the Orland Bethel Family Musculoskeletal Research Center (BMRC), a national leader in transformative research on spine-related diseases.
BMRC hosts the first biobank in the United States dedicated to these issues. The multifaceted gift will transform BMRC into not only a leader in research and training but also a powerful economic engine for the region, attracting investment and creating new companies.
“When Dr. Joon Lee and others took over my care, it transformed my life and gave me new hope. With support from my family’s foundation, they will give hope to others facing devastating medical conditions.”
Campaign Leadership
An initiative as audacious as Proving Possible requires an equally bold leadership team. These 12 Pitt alumni and friends have accepted the challenge to guide this effort. They range from medical professionals to human rights advocates and have agreed to use their expertise and networks to help the campaign reach its goals.
We thank the members for their commitment to Proving Possible and for helping to lead our University into the future.
- (Co-chair) Debbi Gillotti, Trustee (A&S ’77)
- (Co-chair) Peter Varischetti, Trustee (CGS ’92)
- (Ex-officio chair) John Verbanac, Trustee (CGS ’90)
- Eva Tansky Blum, Trustee Emerita (A&S ‘70, LAW ’73)
- Sundaa Bridgett-Jones, Trustee (SPIA ’95G)
- Lucy Fato, (A&S ’88, LAW ’91)
- Angela Timashenka Geiger, (A&S ’92, BUS ’97G)
- Lisa Golden, Trustee (A&S ’93, FHC ’93, BUS ’22G)
- Jeff Martchek, Trustee (A&S ’87)
- Michael Rees, (A&S ‘97, ENGR ‘97, FHC ‘97)
- Deneen Vojta, (A&S ’86)
- Adam Walker, Trustee (A&S ’09)
