Ruth Levy Gottesman ’52 Makes Historic Gift

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By any standard, the $1 billion donation that Ruth Levy Gottesman ’52 gave to Albert Einstein College of Medicine on February 26 is record-shattering. It’s the largest gift given to any medical school in the nation and ensures that no medical student at Einstein will have to pay tuition — ever. Gottesman, who earned her master’s and doctoral degrees from Teachers College at Columbia, taught at Einstein for more than 50 years before retiring as clinical professor emerita of pediatrics; she is currently chair of the board of trustees. The fortune came from her late husband, David Gottesman, an early investor in Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway. In a self-effacing and gracious gesture, she stipulated that the school retain the Einstein name. Gottesman delivered the good news to the diverse student body herself, which prompted raucous cheers, tears, and stunned looks of disbelief. —Tom Stoelker