In support of the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School’s commitment to advancing a more just society and training lawyers dedicated to public service, the Robert and Jane Toll Foundation, founded by Robert Toll, L’66 and Jane Toll, GSE’66, has made a $50 million gift to dramatically expand the Toll Public Interest Scholars and Fellows Program. This gift will double the number of public interest graduates in the coming decade through a combination of full and partial tuition scholarships.
The gift is the largest in history devoted entirely to the training and support of public interest lawyers, and among the ten largest donations ever to a law school in the United States. It arrives at an unprecedented time in history when lawyers working for a more just and fair system are desperately needed. Beginning in the 2021 academic year, which is also Penn’s Year of Civic Engagement, the Toll gift will be implemented to support the tuition and programming for students working towards the crucial goals of public service.
“We are profoundly grateful for this spectacularly transformational gift from Bob and Jane that builds on their previous support of the Law School and will ultimately enable us to double the number of public interest graduates in the future,” said Penn President Amy Gutmann.
“A gift of this magnitude, in this current moment, creates a significant opportunity to expand on the long-standing commitment of the Law School to educate, train, and launch the advocates needed to fight the injustices of our world today,” said Ted Ruger, Dean and Bernard G. Segal Professor of Law.
As the world continues to grapple with a global pandemic that has exposed profound inequalities, the U.S. finds itself in the midst of facing and correcting the deep racial inequities present in its society. By increasing the number of Toll Public Interest Scholars and Fellows, the Law School is positioned at the forefront of the effort to expand access to justice and can increase the capacity of our global public interest community to fight the most significant legal battles of our time.
Robert Toll, and his wife, Jane, have a decades-long history of philanthropy toward the Law School and its public interest programming. Previously in 2006, the Tolls gifted $10 million to the Law School’s public interest program, now named the Toll Public Interest Center (TPIC). A $3 million donation made in 2018 created and launched the Toll Public Service Corps, which includes Toll Scholars and Fellows. That gift also established the Alumni Impact Awards and funded additional financial and career support for alumni through loan forgiveness and the existing Toll Loan Repayment and Assistance Program.
“Our goal is to greatly increase the number of students entering careers in public interest,” said Robert Toll. “It’s my hope that this opportunity leads to even more tangible, positive change from future Law School graduates.”
