Donor Keiko Miwa Ross makes gifts to fuel innovation and entrepreneurship | Penn State University
“The communications industries depend upon professionals who have both the collaborative and technological skills to thrive in a fast-paced, interconnected, and ever-changing world,” said Bellisario College Dean Marie Hardin. “The resources that Dr. Ross has offered to our college will allow us to evolve our programs and anticipate exciting changes in communications and media, and the spaces she has named will be the site where our students come to understand and embrace their full potential as contributors and collaborators in their fields. We are deeply appreciative of her support as we prepare our students for challenging and rewarding careers.”
Philanthropy across the University from an educational pioneer
In 2020, Ross was honored for her transformational philanthropy with Penn State’s Philanthropist of the Year award. Her support to areas across the University Park campus includes a $7.5 million gift to the new landmark Palmer Museum of Art building, which pushed the project to its initial $13.9 million fundraising goal. Currently slated to open in 2023, the building will feature three spaces named for Ross: the Dr. Keiko Miwa Ross Gateway to the Arboretum and Museum, the Dr. Keiko Miwa Ross Lobby, and the Dr. Keiko Miwa Ross Education Lounge.
In the Arboretum, Ross has named the Dr. Keiko Miwa Ross Pond and Observation Steps. Within the University Libraries, she has named the Dr. Keiko Miwa Ross Study Center and the Dr. Keiko Miwa Ross Global News Center; outside Pattee Library, she has named the Dr. Keiko Miwa Ross Garden Terrace. Through her philanthropy, she also has named the Dr. Keiko Miwa Ross Student Farm and the Dr. Keiko Miwa Ross WPSU Production Studio. To date, her philanthropy to the University totals more than $15 million.
Born and raised in Japan, Ross was an educational pioneer in her native country. In 1952, Japanese college education was opened for women for the first time in history, and Ross was among the nation’s first female undergraduates. She completed her education in the United States, however, first receiving her bachelor of arts degree and, later, her master’s and doctoral degrees in education, from universities in Washington State.
Back in Japan, while she was teaching college in Kobe and living in Nishinomiya, Ross worked for a sister-city affiliate program between Nishinomiya and the city of Spokane, Washington, where she had lived during school, and in 1965 she received honorary citizenship from the mayor of Spokane. In 1974, she worked for former U.S. President Gerald Ford during his visit to Japan, receiving a Presidential Certificate of Appreciation.
During one of these special assignments — as an official hostess for foreign dignitaries at Expo ’70, the world’s fair in Osaka — she met S. Thomas Ross, director of an American-Japanese joint venture company. They were married the following year and lived in Japan until 1977, when Thomas was assigned to New York. Keiko subsequently became an American citizen and, while working for the U.S. Department of State, was able to visit all 50 states. The Rosses ultimately settled at the Village at Penn State, and Thomas passed away in 2013.
“I am proud to be both a citizen of the world and a citizen of the Centre region,” said Ross. “With these gifts, I hope to encourage the informed, innovative media and exciting new entrepreneurial ventures, which are so essential to global understanding and local economies. Penn State has given me a sense of community here in State College, and I am so glad that I can help to make that community stronger than ever.”
Ross’s philanthropy will advance “A Greater Penn State for 21st Century Excellence,” a focused campaign that seeks to elevate Penn State’s position as a leading public university in a world defined by rapid change and global connections. With the support of alumni and friends, “A Greater Penn State” seeks to fulfill the three key imperatives of a 21st-century public university: keeping the doors to higher education open to hardworking students regardless of financial well-being; creating transformative experiences that go beyond the classroom; and impacting the world by serving communities and fueling discovery, innovation and entrepreneurship. To learn more about “A Greater Penn State for 21st Century Excellence,” visit greaterpennstate.psu.edu.
Gifts to support Invent Penn State’s LaunchBox and Innovation Hub Network, as well as select economic development initiatives across the commonwealth, are a priority of the campaign, and two opportunities to leverage University funds — the LaunchBox Matching Program and the Economic Development Matching Program — are available through the end of “A Greater Penn State” on June 30, 2022, or until the pool of support is exhausted. To learn more about how to make a gift and secure a match, contact Heather Winfield at [email protected].