The Challenge

Ashela Bean, A&S '10, credits financial aid with enabling her to come to Johns Hopkins and take full advantage of the unique study and research opportunities available to undergraduates.

Johns Hopkins has long been committed to providing aid to deserving individuals at the start of promising careers, and we take special pride in students like Ashela Bean, a Hodson-Gilliam Success Scholar in the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences class of 2010. "My experience here has been incredible," she says. "I've worked on two different research projects, participated in community service in the city schools and have taken classes at the best school of public health in the world." Living with her grandmother in Houston, Ashela—who hopes for a future career working to eliminate health disparities in America—would not have arrived and thrived at Johns Hopkins without financial support. "Scholarship support helped bring me to Johns Hopkins, and has opened the door to a wonderful education and exceptional experiences that have shaped my life and my future," she says. "Here, I discovered my passion for health policy, public service and helping young people."

A passion for service, a mission, a goal—these are the defining characteristics of each new generation of leaders. But there is one additional requirement that is absolutely essential. Opportunity. It is now vitally important for us to re-envision the scope and depth of the assistance we offer. We must make the opportunity of a Johns Hopkins education available to those who will employ their talents building a better future. We do so for our students, for our university and for our world.

The need today is great. For too many talented young scholars, an education at Johns Hopkins is out of reach. And the economic crisis has only amplified this problem. Since 2008, the number of freshman applicants seeking financial aid has increased by more than 25 percent, and the amount of aid needed per student has grown. The only way to bridge the gap between the cost of a college education and a family's resources is through financial aid. Only by increasing this aid can we ensure that the life-changing opportunity of a Johns Hopkins education is available to all deserving students.