The goal of this multi-year campaign is to raise $75 million to provide scholarships to the most promising individuals who will have the greatest impact on the world of business—students like Christina Bachtina.
Bachtina and her family immigrated to the United States from Ukraine. The first in her family to attend college, she was her high school's valedictorian and went on to study finance at the University of Florida, where she graduated magna cum laude. Now a second year Booth student, she recently completed a summer internship at Boston Consulting Group.
“My family has worked tirelessly to help get me to where I am today,” Bachtina said. “We were all elated that I would be attending Booth with an alleviated financial burden. It is an amazing and selfless gift to give to a student, and I will be eternally grateful for it.”
Scholarships are crucial in attracting the most diverse and accomplished candidates from around the globe—like Bachtina—and allow them to make their MBA program decision based on academics rather than cost. Through the Boundless Scholarship Initiative, the school aims to ease financial constraints so that the most talented students can attend Chicago Booth and reach their full potential.
"It is an amazing and selfless gift to give to a student, and I will be eternally grateful for it."
Increased scholarship funding will have an immediate impact on Booth’s efforts to recruit the highest caliber of students, regardless of background and need, who have the ability and desire to thrive within the school’s demanding and stimulating environment.
Dean Madhav Rajan has made increasing access to scholarships one of his top priorities, with a goal of $75 million to underwrite a substantial increase to the school’s scholarship fund. Booth’s scholarship support is currently underfunded relative to the school’s peers.
“In recent years, we have been successful in attracting outstanding students from an increasingly diverse pool of applicants, in terms of backgrounds and career aspirations,” Rajan said. “To continue to get the best students to choose Booth and maximize their impact on the world, it’s critical that we grow scholarship support.”
“To continue to get the best students to choose Booth and maximize their impact on the world, it’s critical that we grow scholarship support.”
In addition to calling upon alumni to invest in scholarships, Rajan has taken other measures to make a Chicago Booth MBA more accessible for students. These include:
Since the quiet phase of the Boundless Initiative began in 2018, $23.3 million, or 31 percent of the goal, has been raised. Thanks to the generosity of Amy Wallman, ’75, and Richard Wallman, ’74; and Roxanne M. Martino, ’88, and her husband, Rocco J. Martino, matching funds for scholarships are currently available, effectively allowing donors to double their impact for students.
Chicago Booth graduates understand the transformative power the school has had on their lives and careers. The Boundless Initiative allows alumni the opportunity to engage with Booth’s pay-it-forward philosophy by making that same experience possible for a new generation. Share the boundless possibilities of a Booth education with the leaders of tomorrow by contributing to the Boundless Scholarship Initiative today.
While the need for unrestricted scholarships is the most pressing, donors may choose to specify a preference for their fund, which could include program, geography, industry, or more. To invest in students through the Boundless Scholarship Initiative, email Katie Tkach or call 773-702-7259.
In recognition of this generous gift, the campus will be renamed the Robert Rothman, ’77, London Campus.
Gift from Robert Rothman, ’77, to Support the London Campus and Global Faculty in Residence Program
Deirdre Campbell, ’06, helps companies, organizations, and individuals show their best selves through her application of strategy, marketing, analysis, and communication.
Q&A with Deirdre Campbell, ’06
Awareness of disparities in income, support, and opportunities in her childhood neighborhood of Hyde Park is part of what led Judy Maley, ’84, along with Gayle Haller, ’87, to found Booth Alumni Nonprofit Consultants (BANC).
Giving Back to the Community
