To high schoolers aspiring to become a part of the medical field Ruth Levy Gottesman’s billion dollar dose of hope stands as a beacon of light and hope. The 93-year-old, former professor at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, has made a profound impact by donating one billion dollars to the Bronx medical school. Gottesman specifically instructed that her generous contribution be designated to cover tuition fees for all future medical students attending the institution.
Ruth Levy Gottesman, Ed.D, serves as the Chair of the Einstein board of Trustees and also serves as a member of the Montefiore Health System Board. Dr. Gottesman first joined the Einstein’s Children’s Evaluation and Rehabilitation Center (CERC) in 1968. During a time when learning disabilities were often unrecognized and misdiagnosed, Gottesman developed widely utilized screening, evaluation and treatment modalities that have assisted tens of thousands of children. In 1992, she founded the Adult Literacy Program, followed by co-founding Fisher Landau Center for the treatment of Learning Disabilities in 1998.
In her personal life, Ruth Gottesman married her late husband David Gottesman in 1950. Ruth and David met in 1948 just before Ruth began her freshman year at Mount Holyoke College. David Gottesman was the founder of the highly successful investment firm, First Manhattan, and together they raised three children,residing in Rye, New York. David Gottesman had an estimated worth of three billion at the time of his death in September of 2022, with much of his fortune coming from his 6,402 class A shares of Berkshire Hathaway stock.
Gottesman’s donation stands as one of the largest charitable contributions to any educational institution in the United States, and likely the largest ever to a medical school. Noteworthy not only for its substantial amount, but also for its destination — a medical institution in the Bronx, New York City’s poorest borough. The Bronx has been labeled as the unhealthiest county in New York along with the highest rate of premature deaths. Historically, many donors have been known to donate large amounts to more famously known medical institutions and hospitals in Manhattan, the city’s wealthiest borough. Gottesman hopes that her donation would enable new doctors to begin their careers without the large burdens of medical school debt, which often tops $200,000. With her donation, she hopes to open paths for those who would otherwise not be able to afford to attend medical school. Her large donation sparks
Following her husband’s passing, Gottesman inherited a whole portfolio of Berkshire Hataway stock. In a New York Times article she recalled the simple instructions given to her by her late husband: “Do whatever you think is right with it.” It did not take long for her to decide how to use the funds.Through her continual involvement in the medical field and at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine she has become well aware of the crushing medical debt most students are faced with. According to the school, almost 50 percent of its students owed more than $200,000 after graduation, 25 percent more than than other New York City medical schools. Gottesman was keen to make an anonymous donation as she believed that nobody needed to know, her belief is that an act of kindness could be performed without anyone’s knowledge. A fellow doctor and friend convinced Gottesman to go public, as her story is guaranteed to inspire the future generation of doctors and benefactors.
With Gottesman’s generous and purposeful gift, the medical field stands with a compromising future. A new generation of aspiring doctors will have an opportunity to pursue their dreams without the financial constraints that have hindered many. Gottesman’s act of kindness is an inspiration to all and a transformative push to the ever important medical field.
