University announces $8.3 million gift from "Greater Penn State" chair
University Park, Pa. — Rick Sokolov, chair of the fundraising campaign A Greater Penn State for 21st Century Excellence, and his wife, Susan Sokolov, have committed more than $8.3 million to support a range of campaign priorities. The gift from the alumni couple and longtime Penn State supporters will endow the Sokolov-Miller Family Financial and Life Skills Center, make scholarships and emergency funds available to students across the University, provide resources and opportunities for Penn State student-athletes, and more. The University will match portions of the Sokolovs’ gift, bringing the total impact to more than $12.1 million.
“I am inspired by this visionary commitment from Rick and Susan Sokolov, which advances the Open Doors imperative of the ‘Greater Penn State’ campaign,” said Penn State President Eric Barron. “In order for students from every economic background to graduate on time and stay on track for success—a central goal of this imperative—they often need support from multiple angles, from education in financial literacy and life skills, to scholarship support, to emergency aid at critical moments in their college careers. In addition, the Sokolovs’ gifts to other areas of the University will make the Penn State experience even richer and more comprehensive. Penn State is deeply fortunate to have alumni as generous as Rick and Susan.”
Of the Sokolovs’ gift, $4.45 million will create an endowment for the Financial Literacy and Wellness Center, to be known as the Sokolov-Miller Family Financial and Life Skills Center. Dedicated to providing students with the knowledge and skills they need to manage financial resources effectively for a lifetime of financial wellbeing, the center delivers web-based, self-study modules; educational presentations at first-year seminars; workshops for various student groups; one-on-one counseling; and more. The Sokolovs’ endowed gift will enable the center’s director, Daad Rizk, to hire the additional staff needed to expand the scope and scale of the center’s activities and to reach even more students every year. Among other enhancements, the Sokolovs’ gift will enable the center to provide additional programming tailored to student-athletes.
Another portion of the Sokolovs’ gift will be used to provide students with scholarships and emergency financial aid. The Sokolovs will designate $100,000 to endow the Sokolov Family Open Doors Scholarship at Penn State Shenango, which is located near their home in Youngstown, Ohio. They will contribute an additional $100,000 to the Penn State Board of Trustees Emergency Assistance Fund endowment, which supports students at any Penn State campus who are facing family or personal hardships that may otherwise hinder their path to graduation. They have also contributed $100,000 to their existing Sokolov Family Endowed Football Scholarship in Intercollegiate Athletics.
The gift will enhance two additional funds the Sokolovs created prior to the “Greater Penn State” campaign. The Sokolovs have designated $100,000 to the Sokolov Family Seminar Series in Real Estate in the Smeal College of Business, which enhances the college’s curriculum in real estate, and $100,000 to the Richard and Susan Sokolov Family Fund in the Child Study Center in the College of the Liberal Arts, which supports a range of center programs.
Longtime supporters of Penn State Intercollegiate Athletics, the Sokolovs have designated approximately $1.3 million to support renovations to the Lasch Football Building and $25,000 to enable the varsity women's basketball team to travel to Spain. The intent of the trip will be to provide student-athletes with an enriching cultural experience and the opportunity to compete against student-athletes from a different country and culture.
In addition, the Sokolovs have made a $2 million estate commitment they will designate in the future.
Said Rick Sokolov, “Susan and I are excited by the strategic vision of the ‘Greater Penn State’ campaign, and through this combination of gifts we hope to advance the campaign’s imperatives while also reflecting our personal commitments to financial literacy and life skills, need-based financial aid, Penn State student-athletes, and more. We hope that our gifts will inspire our fellow Penn State supporters to consider how they, too, can help us build ‘A Greater Penn State.’”
Rick and Susan Sokolov are members of the President's Club, The Atherton Society, and the Laurel Circle of the Mount Nittany Society. These new gifts will qualify them for membership in the Elm Circle of the Mount Nittany Society, which includes the University’s most generous donors.
“Because of this extraordinary set of gifts from Rick and Susan Sokolov, Penn State students will have the means to enroll at Penn State and complete their degrees once they get here, the skills and knowledge to make sound financial and life choices, and the opportunity to enrich their learning through athletics, international travel, and innovative academic programming,” said O. Richard Bundy III, vice president for development and alumni relations. “I am deeply grateful to Rick and Susan for setting such a powerful example for other Penn Staters who are considering a gift to the ‘Greater Penn State’ campaign.”
Rick Sokolov is the president and chief operating officer and a member of the board of directors of Simon Property Group, the largest publicly traded retail real estate company operating in North America. Prior to his tenure as chair of “A Greater Penn State for 21st Century Excellence,” he served as the Intercollegiate Athletics chair during “For the Future: The Campaign for Penn State Students” and as a member of the Intercollegiate Athletics committee during “A Grand Destiny.” He also serves as a member of the Smeal College of Business Real Estate Advisory Board. He holds a bachelor of arts degree in psychology from the College of the Liberal Arts (1971) and a juris doctor from Georgetown University Law School (1974). Susan Sokolov holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in education from the College of Education (1971 and 1972, respectively).
Gifts from Penn State’s alumni and friends have been essential to the success of the University’s historic land-grant mission to serve the public good. To fulfill that mission for a new era of rapid change and global connections, the University has embarked upon "A Greater Penn State for 21st Century Excellence," a fast-paced campaign focused on the three key imperatives of a public university. Private support will keep the door to higher education open and enable students to graduate on time and on track to success; create transformative experiences on Penn State campuses and around the globe that tap the full potential of Penn Staters to make a difference; and impact the world through discovery, innovation and entrepreneurship. To learn more, visit greaterpennstate.psu.edu.