Carnegie Mellon University and the Norman and Ruth Rales Foundation are unveiling a $150 million initiative to broaden the nation’s pipeline of “STEM” talent by tapping women, minorities and others who are underrepresented in science, technology engineering and math.

The intent is to diversify those fields by offering not only tuition-free graduate study for nearly 90 students a year in perpetuity, but also giving them a living stipend and various support and mentoring to help them thrive.

Officials hope the CMU Rales Fellows Program, being announced Wednesday, will become a national model to reach talented but under-resourced students pursuing masters and doctoral studies.

It’s the product of both a $116 million gift from the foundation, one of the largest in Carnegie Mellon history, and $34 million that CMU is endowing.

The Rales, both deceased, were children of Jewish immigrants whose parents came from Europe more than a century ago.

Norman was raised in an orphanage in New York City, leaving at age 17 with $5 and a toothbrush. Ruth grew up in Pittsburgh.

They married and lived with their sons in Squirrel Hill from about 1950 to 1965 on their way to becoming enormously successful in home improvement and other industries.

They turned that fortune into philanthropy.

“They had tremendous compassion for others who had faced hardships,” said Joshua Rales, one of the couple’s four sons and foundation president and trustee. “They really believed in paying their success forward. They loved America.”

The National Science Foundation and National Science Board describe underrepresented students as the “missing millions” — those kept from STEM fields by circumstances.

Increasing their participation is seen as important to the nation’s economic prosperity, security and global competitiveness, officials said.

Intended beneficiaries of the CMU Rales Fellows Program are “candidates from low socio-economic backgrounds, first-generation college students, graduates of minority-serving institutions and other groups,” both CMU and the foundation said in announcing the effort.

“These students are really, really smart, but they don’t necessarily have had all the life experiences and support of students who come from more privileged backgrounds,” Carnegie Mellon President Farnam Jahanian said.

1st to enroll: Fall 2024

The first Fellows are to be enrolled in fall 2024. Ultimately, the plan is to underwrite 86 graduate students in those fields a year, generating thousands of research and industry leaders in the coming decades, the foundation and CMU said.

“My aspiration is that the CMU Rales Fellows Program and its focus on tuition-free and holistic support for graduate students will create a national model that other colleges and universities will seek to emulate,” Jahanian said.

“At the heart of the CMU Rales Fellows Program is a commitment to remove existing barriers and empower this next generation of domestic talent so they can apply their skills and ingenuity to realize new scientific and technological breakthroughs for the benefit of humanity,” he said.

They are to receive full tuition plus a stipend for their living expenses, housing and health insurance as well as faculty mentoring, career and networking assistance.

“CMU is grateful to the Rales Foundation for their generous support, and we are honored to partner with them to enact our shared vision for this initiative and to honor the legacy of Norman and Ruth Rales,” Jahanian said.

An event formally announcing the program is planned for campus Thursday with Gov. Josh Shapiro, U.S. Rep. Summer Lee, foundation representatives and others expected to attend.

Barriers well documented

The barriers facing under-represented students seeking STEM careers are well documented.

Data from the National Science Foundation and the National Science Board indicate women, Black and Latinx students are one-half and sometimes even one-third as likely to be working in STEM fields as their white male counterparts.

First-generation students were one-fifth as likely to pursue a graduate degree, the Pew Research Center found in 2021.

Cost and debt are often cited as impediments. The average undergraduate loan was 65% higher for first generation students working toward doctoral degrees than for continuing-generation students, according to the Council of Graduate Schools.

Norman, who once worked as a haberdasher and at various other jobs, had huge success in the home improvement business, land development and time shares, but he and his wife never forgot their roots, their son said. Their philanthropy focused on education for the disadvantaged, cancer research, and hospitals.

‘New voices, new talent’

He said the foundation’s trustees are have to work on an endeavor that “bring to the table new voices and new talent.”

“This initiative aligns perfectly with the creative vision of our beloved parents, Norman and Ruth, who deeply believed in extending a helping hand to others and keeping alive the American spirit of generosity and possibility.”

At first, the Fellows Program will be for students pursuing certain graduate degrees in the College of Engineering, Mellon College of Science, School of Computer Science, Dietrich College of Humanities and Social Sciences, and Neuroscience Institute, officials said.

Eventually, the program will be open to all of CMU’s graduate STEM programs.

Carnegie Mellon will also work with the Ron Brown Scholar Program to help identify and engage top candidates for the CMU Rales Fellows Program. The Ron Brown Scholar Program has worked for nearly three decades to create pathways to higher education for African American high school students through scholarships and support initiatives.

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