This article was originally reported in April 2025.
Syracuse University launched “The Syracuse Promise” in April 2025, a three-year, $50 million fundraising effort to pay for more student scholarships. The university said the goal is to make a Syracuse education more affordable for high-achieving students from across the socioeconomic spectrum (Syracuse University News, April 22, 2025).
How the matching program works
At the center of the initiative is a $10 million matching fund, paid for by two unrestricted estate gifts. It adds $1 for every $2 that donors give to scholarship endowments:
- Gifts of $100,000 or more that establish a new endowed scholarship qualify for the match.
- Gifts of $50,000 or more that enhance an existing endowed scholarship also qualify.
In practice, a $100,000 gift for a new endowed scholarship becomes a $150,000 endowment. The money goes to new and existing endowed scholarships in all of Syracuse’s schools and colleges. Because endowed funds are invested and only part of their earnings is spent each year, they pay out scholarships indefinitely rather than for a single year.
Chancellor Kent Syverud said the initiative is meant to ensure a Syracuse education “remains within reach for every talented and driven student.” Tracy Barlok, senior vice president and chief advancement officer, described endowed scholarships as “lasting support that grows over time through investment and continued giving.” The university said 78% of its students receive some form of financial aid and that it has reduced the average student debt burden by more than 10% in recent years.
Early results
By September 3, 2025, the Syracuse Promise had raised more than $5.2 million in new scholarship funding. Examples named by the university include (Syracuse University News, September 3, 2025):
- the first donors, Jeannine ’90 and Glenn Lostritto, who added to their family endowed scholarship for architecture students;
- Bernard Armstrong III ’85 and Christopher Baylow ’88, whose gifts plus the match provide $225,000 for the School of Architecture 150 Global Study Endowed Scholarship;
- a new endowed scholarship from Joe ’84 and Linda Bockskopf for SUSTAIN Scholars in the College of Arts and Sciences;
- a fully funded endowed scholarship for first-generation students from Robert ’85 and Teresa Heitsenrether;
- the Spirit of Sankofa Endowed Law Scholarship, funded by Stephanie D. Jones L’03, with the College of Law expecting to make the first award in spring 2026.
We could not find a later fundraising total on Syracuse’s news site as of November 2026; the campaign is scheduled to run three years from spring 2025.
Cost and aid at Syracuse
- Cost: According to IPEDS, Syracuse’s 2025–26 undergraduate tuition was $63,710, plus $1,818 in required fees and about $19,188 for on-campus housing and food (Forward Pathway school page).
- Admissions: For fall 2025, Syracuse received 44,480 first-year applications and admitted 45.9%. Of 22,589 students enrolled in fall 2025, 3,403 were international (IPEDS).
- Ranking: Syracuse is No. 72 among national universities in the U.S. News 2027 Best Colleges rankings.
What international students should know
At Syracuse, only students who meet federal eligibility requirements (U.S. citizens and eligible noncitizens) should file the FAFSA and CSS Profile. International undergraduates are considered for merit-based scholarships automatically, based on their application for admission, and these are awarded by the Office of Admissions when students are admitted (Syracuse Office of Financial Aid). International applicants should therefore plan to cover most costs themselves and show proof of funding for the I-20, and should ask the admissions office whether any donor scholarship in their intended school is open to non-U.S. citizens.