Strength in Numbers

“Not everyone is ready to make a $1 million commitment, so we wanted to reach people who may be unsure of how to get started in philanthropy and show them the difference they can make at other levels of giving,” says Lam, who serves as the Board’s vice chair.

Lam reached out to colleague, Xing Liu, WG’04, to discuss ideas that would generate the most support. After meeting with representatives from the Wharton School and Penn’s Undergraduate Named Scholarship Program, the answer was clear.

“Many talented and smart students around the world have humble family backgrounds, especially those from developing nations,” says Liu. “We felt that working toward making admissions need-blind for international students would be something that our community in Asia could get behind.”

During a meeting of the Wharton Executive Board for Asia in May 2021, Lam presented an idea of building a cohort of named scholarship donors in Greater China. Two Board members, Chair Alice Hung, C’90, W’90, and Catherine Leung, W’90, immediately pledged their support for the cause. As Chair, Alice set an influential example, quickly adopting the call-to-action and encouraging others to step up. When Board member Sandeep Naik, WG’04, proposed expanding the concept to include donors from South and Southeast Asia, the Wharton Asia Alumni Scholarship Initiative (WAASI) was born.

The Wharton Asia Alumni Scholarship Initiative is a great way for alums and friends of Wharton to have a direct impact. We can all do our small share in making our world more connected, and we can do that through creating better access to education.”Kenny Lam, W’96

Momentum for the WAASI (pronounced “wah-sai”), which translates to “Wow” in Chinese, grew rapidly. The initial goal was to establish a cohort of 10 alumni who would create scholarships before the conclusion of The Power of Penn and Wharton’s More Than Ever Campaigns. After only four months, the WAASI has already created 14 endowed scholarships and is already making plans to build its next cohort of alumni donors.

Liu has noted common ground among members of the WAASI. “First and foremost, each of us believes strongly in supporting education,” he says. “We all benefit from staying connected with younger generations and seeing the world through their eyes. Another thing we agree on is that Penn has historically greatly benefited from being inclusive, including international students. And everyone appreciates the opportunity to make an impact that compounds over time.”

Seven members of the initial cohort are first-time major gift donors. Lam and Liu see this introduction to giving at Penn as a starting point for increased involvement. “Some of us are already involved as volunteers, but for others, this may be their first or most significant touchpoint with Penn since graduation,” says Liu. “We hope this will open the door to greater participation at Wharton and across the University.”

While the goal of making admissions need-blind for international students will take a lot of hard work, the WAASI is focused on the big picture and on creating a model that other alumni can follow. “We know that this cannot happen overnight,” says Lam. “We are already planning to build our second WAASI cohort, and we hope Penn alumni and friends all over the world will take notice that this method can build truly transformative support.

“We are driven to go the distance because this mission will create lasting impact for many students,” continues Lam. “This is just the beginning.”