University Times

The Bradford campus has received nearly $1 million from the estate of Alice M. Meisel, a Pitt alumna.

Meisel's gift of more than $928,000 represents the largest bequest made to Pitt-Bradford in the history of the campus. It also is the second largest single gift from an individual.

"The impact of Alice Meisel's philanthropic gift toward Pitt-Bradford cannot be measured," said Richard E. McDowell, Bradford campus president. "Her level of generosity, coupled with the unexpectedness of the gift, amazed us. Alice Meisel was a life-long learner, and her gift to Pitt-Bradford will carry on that legacy."

McDowell expects the gift from Meisel's estate to be used in the college's Plan 2000, which includes academic support, scholarships, technology improvements, and construction and renovation projects.

"We plan a permanent recognition in memory and honor of Alice Meisel," McDowell said. Through her bequest, generations of life-long learners at Bradford will have the opportunity to enrich their lives, he added. "Alice Meisel's gift to the college was made quietly and without fanfare. It's appropriate, then, that her legacy will continue on in students who never knew her but hold her same passion for learning and living."

Meisel died Aug. 22, 1998, at the age of 85.