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LME Fund Makes HBS Dreams a Reality
In February, Dean Nitin Nohria hosted a private dinner at his residence, the Dean’s House, for a group of current HBS student fellowship recipients and their three generous “angel” alumni: Dean LeBaron (MBA ’60), Charley Ellis (MBA ’63), and John McArthur (MBA ’59, DBA ’63). The three men’s LeBaron-McArthur-Ellis (LME) Fellowship Fund has supported more than 530 HBS students since its founding in 1983, when Ellis conceived of the idea and, with the wise counsel of then HBS Dean McArthur and the immediate support of LeBaron, implemented it. The fund was significantly augmented in 1995, when McArthur and his wife, Natty, joined with Ellis and LeBaron.
The LME Fund, which has provided almost $12 million in support since its inception, currently disburses around $1 million in fellowship awards annually. This year’s 34 recipients hail from the United States and nineteen other countries, including many from the developing world. They are among the 841 first- and second-year students at the School who receive support from a variety of HBS fellowships. Donor contributions account for 87 percent of the $21 million need-based fellowship budget, with the remainder — some $3.4 million — drawn from gifts made by the many alumni and friends who contribute to the Dean’s Fund.
Prior to this year’s LME dinner, the three principals reflected on the fund’s origins and impact. Explained Ellis, “Back in the early 1980s, needy students typically got loans through banks. But too often that financial burden compelled them to take only high-paying jobs upon graduation. The fellowships free them from that constraint; the students who have enjoyed this huge benefit can therefore appreciate the importance of keeping the fund going for future students.” LeBaron professed that he was “always astounded at the quality of these young people,” while McArthur noted that “they seem more worldly wise than we were at the same stage.”
“I think they’re fundamentally like we were,” said Ellis. “They’re bright young people, hoping to do something with their lives and careers that will really make a difference in accordance with the values they care about.”
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