University of Michigan

Gifts in Time: Shipman Scholars program brings H.S. leaders and best to U-M

When it comes to college recruiting, the competition for top talent can be ferocious.

And not just for promising quarterbacks. The University of Michigan annually vies with its peers for the nation’s academic all-stars. For the past 15 years, the Shipman Scholars program, which includes merit scholarships and an affiliated student society, has provided Michigan with a formidable edge in this contest.

“Michigan wasn’t necessarily on my radar in high school,” said Concord, Mass. resident Dara Fisher, a member of the College of Engineering’s Class of 2011.  “If it hadn’t been for the Shipman weekend and the scholarship I was offered, I’d probably be at Columbia or Duke.”

The appeal of the prestigious Sidney J. and Irene G. Shipman scholarships and the affiliated Shipman Society has been instrumental in bringing 292 of the nation’s best students to the U-M since the scholarship program’s 1995 launch. Made possible through a $6 million endowment gift from the estate of the late Dr. Sidney Shipman (AB ’17, MD ’19) and his wife, Irene, the program’s merit-based scholarship fund now totals about $20 million. In the last year alone, it supported 81 students enrolled in schools and colleges across the Ann Arbor campus.

Accepted to the U-M based on their high school academic performance, standardized test scores, leadership and involvement in activities, the Shipman prospects are invited to campus for a special Shipman Scholars spring weekend. Once on campus, they meet with University leaders, eat well, attend performances, interview with faculty and current Shipman Scholars, and see first-hand the best of Michigan.

“Applying to college is such an intense process, and then Michigan hits you with an invitation for this free weekend that’s so well run and so different,” said Fisher, who visited in 2007, amid active recruitment by other colleges and universities. “I even got to sing ‘The Victors’ at the 50-yard line of Michigan Stadium.”

Nearly 70 percent of the students who visited campus in spring 2009 chose to attend Michigan with 21 accepting the most prestigious Shipman Scholarship. This award now provides approximately $15,000 per year for four years, plus room and board valued at nearly $9,000. Over the course of four years, this scholarship is valued at approximately $96,000. Another 10 students received the Shipman Society Scholarship valued at $7,500 per year or $30,000 over four years.

The funding support played a pivotal role in Brian Harris’s decision to come to Michigan. Originally from the Detroit area, the Tampa, Fla. resident said he always wanted to be a Wolverine, but knew the financial advantages of studying in-state would be hard to overlook. 

“Michigan was definitely on my radar, but it costs a lot of money to come here from out-of-state,” said the School of Kinesiology Class of 2012 member. “If I didn’t have the Shipman Scholarship, I couldn’t have attended this university for financial reasons.”

In addition to the monetary award, Shipman recipients can live in “Shipman House,” an enclave of rooms in the South Quadrangle Residence Hall, and can participate in the Shipman Society, which meets bi-weekly to organize group activities, lectures, intramural sports, and such service projects as Alternative Spring Break.

Harris said the special camaraderie he has formed with his fellow Shipman Scholars began on that first weekend visit.

“The best part of that weekend was meeting the other kids,” he said. “You get to talking and saying ‘let’s come to Michigan.’ Even though you go on to meet other people and make new friends, you have the benefit of some built-in relationships when you come to campus as a freshman. I don’t expect those friendships will end when I leave here.”

 

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