Every day at the GSD, our thoughtful and creative students explore crucial design solutions for the complex topics of our world. To support them with studying, exploring, and making, Sarah M. Whiting, Harvard GSD Dean and Josep Lluís Sert Professor of Architecture, is committed to making design education more accessible, regardless of personal financial circumstances.

To open the doors of a top-tier design education to a wider range of voices in the school, the GSD launched the Future Design Leaders Match. This urgent student support initiative will significantly impact generations of future designers, the industry, and the alumni community by establishing endowed, named fellowships.

The Match is a key part of Dean Sarah M. Whiting’s vision of making design education accessible, regardless of personal financial circumstances, while attracting and enrolling the most talented architects, designers, and planners. To act on that commitment, Dean Whiting dedicated a fund of $4 million for matching donor contributions. This limited-time opportunity to establish a named Fellowship at the GSD and receive an equal contribution from the Dean’s fund represents the GSD’s most open, robust funding opportunity to date to support students in the broadest possible way.

Donors will receive Harvard gift credit for the total commitment. The funding will support students in master’s level programs and the Doctor of Design (DDes) program. Opportunities start at $125,000.

As the GSD’s most important philanthropy priority, student support ensures that the school will continue to produce design leaders who have the skills and the self-knowledge to lead change throughout their careers and across the globe. The impact will influence the academic growth of individual students and the shape of the design community.

Future Design Leaders Match Donor Listing

We are delighted to thank and acknowledge the following alumni and friends who generously established endowed Fellowships at the Harvard University Graduate School of Design as part of the Future Design Leaders Match. The Match will impact generations of future designers, the design industry, and our alumni community by making design education more accessible. The list below includes gifts in chronological order.

  • Abigail Turin MArch ’97 and Jonathan Gans established the Turin Gans Fellowship Fund
  • Brian Douglas Lee MArch ’78 and Wendy Szeto Lee established the Lee Family Fellowship Fund
  • Robyn Morgenstern Rosenblatt MArch ’97 established the Morgenstern Rosenblatt Fellowship Fund
  • Peter Coombe MArch ’88 and Betty Chen AB ’87 established the Graduate School of Design Alumni Council Fellowship Fund
  • Carola and Bobby Jain established the Jain Family Fellowship Fund
  • Donor Confidential
  • Scott Mead AB ’77 established the Mead Family Fellowship Fund
  • Donor Confidential (2)
  • Leslie and Sanjay Patel AB ’83, SM ’83 established the Patel GSD Family Fellowship Fund
  • Bridget Colman and Mark M. Colman AB ’83, MBA ’87 expanded the Horne Family Fellowship Fund
  • Kongjian Yu DDes ’95 expanded the Yu Family Carl Steinitz Fellowship Fund
  • Joel D. Heisey MAUD ’91, MPA ’91 established the Joel D. Heisey Urban Design Fellowship Fund
  • Kathleen S. Nagle MArch ’87 and Ralph E. Johnson MArch ’73 expanded the Nagle-Johnson Family Fellowship Fund
  • Donor Confidential
  • Camille Mendoza established the Paul V. Clemeno Design Fellowship Fund
  • Laurinda Spear and Bernardo Fort-Brescia MArch ’75 established the Harold Fort MLU ’14 Fellowship Fund
  • Laurinda Spear and Bernardo Fort-Brescia MArch ’75 expanded the Marisa Fort MArch ’06 Fellowship Fund
  • Robert Ho COL ’77 established the Ho Family Fellowship Fund
  • Bil Ehrlich BArch ’67 established the Ehrlich Family Fellowship Fund
  • Costanzta Sbokou MDes ’01 established the Costantza Sbokou-Constantakopoulou MDes ’01 Fellowship Fund
  • Jeanne Gang MArch ’93 and Mark Schendel MArch ’89 established the Jeanne Gang MArch ’93 and Mark Schendel MArch ’89 Fellowship Fund
  • Siddharth Yog MBA ’04 expanded the Yog Family Design Leadership Fund