Title:Called to give

Celebrating the creative, collective power of the Georgetown community

Over the past decade, Called to Be: The Campaign for Georgetown has invited reflection on our university’s role as a place for student formation, world-class research, and contribution to the common good. The campaign asked community members to envision how we can become the university we are called to be.

From every corner of every campus, we’re experiencing the transformative generosity of Hoyas and a shared hope for the continued advancement of the institution and its place in our changing world.

A commitment to Jesuit values in business

As the sun set over the Potomac on a cool October evening, people streamed into the lower level of the Healey Family Student Center for a talk with disability activist Tiffany Yu (B’10), sponsored by the McDonough School of Business, the Disability Cultural Center (DCC), and others.

Yu was interviewed by Mrudula Chodavarapu (B’26), a senior double majoring in finance and in operations and analytics, who is involved in the DCC. She and the alumni author Yu, who has a permanent arm injury, engaged in a dynamic conversation about disability: how Yu navigated Georgetown and later a successful investment banking career, how not all disabilities are apparent, why it’s important to invest in disabled entrepreneurs, and how to be an ally.

The crowd came to hear from Yu, founder and CEO of Diversability and an internationally recognized leader in disability advocacy who established Georgetown’s Disability Empowerment Endowed Fund through a seed gift in 2021. But people also came as friends of Chodavarapu, including Quentin Dupont, S.J., the Swan Family Ignatian Assistant Professor, an endowed professorship created in 2022 in support of Dean Paul Almeida’s vision for a business school steeped in Jesuit values.

Dupont taught Chodavarapu when she was a second-year student and faced some disabling health challenges. Dupont was particularly supportive, she recalls.

“If there was anything that came up, he would go above and beyond to accommodate you,” she says. “He prioritizes his students.”

Residing on campus means Dupont is able to get to know students more fully, including attending programs like Chodavarapu’s event.

“I enjoy interacting with students in different contexts, whether at Mass or lunch at the Jesuit residence,” he says. “Because I live here I get to have encounters—some pastoral, some professional, some educational—on campus throughout the day and throughout the weekend. And that’s a privilege.”

Dupont joined the faculty in 2021, becoming the first full-time Jesuit at the McDonough School of Business in decades. The aim of the endowed professorship is for students, faculty, and staff to work with someone who has dedicated their life to contemplation in action, caring for the whole person, and expanding the common good.

“We want to model a credible path towards a person being both academically excellent and a true witness to the power and the worth of Jesuit values,” says Dupont.

Chodavarapu appreciates not only Dupont’s warmth, humor, and mentorship, but also how he incorporates ethics in his finance courses.

“He helps us understand the ethics of finance, which some people view as inherently evil,” she adds with a smile. “Father Dupont takes that view and turns it on its head, asking us how we can use finance to promote good.”

Dupont is grateful to Joseph Swan Sr. (B’67) and Denise Swan (Parents’95, ’96, ’00, Grandparents’25, ’27, ’29) for supporting his unique blend of expertise in philosophy, theology, and business.

“For centuries, the Jesuits’ mission has been to educate young people’s minds, bodies, and spirits,” says Joe Swan. “They not only strengthen students’ understanding of what is right and wrong but also their responsibilities to the betterment of society. They help our future leaders understand the need and importance of introducing ‘soul’ into business and our democracy.”

“Jesuit business education is not just business education with a little bit of Jesuit flavor,” says Dupont. “It’s a whole way to think about purposefulness in order to help our students find their deep desires, their true selves, and to help them make the world the best version of what it can be.”

Paying it forward to support future scientists

For physician Toni Eldridge Wilkes (C’78), life has always revolved around science. Growing up in Philadelphia, her passion for the sciences motivated her to excel and led to the success she would achieve at Georgetown and beyond. These days, Wilkes is motivated by another passion—to support first-generation students and give back to the university that gave her the confidence and foundation for her achievements.

Wilkes arrived on campus in 1974 as part of Georgetown’s Community Scholars Program, which supports students who are part of the first generation in their families to attend college. The program offers a rigorous academic summer session before their first year to ease the transition to college and supports Georgetown’s long-standing commitment to access and affordability for a socioeconomically diverse cohort of students.

She soon met Royden B. Davis, S.J. (C’47, L’49, HON’85) (1923–2002), dean of the College, who encouraged her to major in biology, connected her to research at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital, and was the first to suggest a career in medicine.

As a first-generation student, Wilkes expected the Georgetown experience would be challenging.

“I knew it would be a hard path, and I knew I would need to work even harder to achieve my goals,” she says. In addition to scholarship support, she helped pay for college by working at the hospital and the student cafeteria, which didn’t leave a lot of time for other pursuits.

At her graduation, Wilkes received the Louis McCahill Award from the College of Arts & Sciences, recognizing her perseverance and determination in pursuing her education. The award and her Georgetown experience reinforced her lifelong commitment to hard work and high achievement.

“No matter how modest your means, just keep working hard and don’t give up,” she says.

After Georgetown, Wilkes earned her M.D. from Temple University, where she met her husband, David Wilkes. She practiced as an OB/GYN, serving low-income patients before building a successful private practice. Her husband pursued research and later served as associate dean at Indiana University School of Medicine and dean at the University of Virginia School of Medicine.

The couple recently decided to include a bequest for Georgetown in their estate plans.

“I never thought in a million years I would be able to give back to the institution that gave me so much, but that is what I am doing—and what one should do,” she says.

The gift will create the Toni Eldridge Wilkes, M.D. (C’78), and David S. Wilkes, M.D., Endowed Scholarship Fund to support undergraduates studying the sciences, with a focus on students enrolled in the Regents STEM Scholars Program, an initiative that addresses the shortage of first-generation college students who successfully complete degrees in STEM fields.

In order to start awarding the scholarship as soon as possible, the couple also made an outright commitment using an IRA Qualified Charitable Distribution, which allows them to meet the students benefiting from their scholarship funds and see first-hand the impact of their philanthropy. The bequest will add to the scholarship in the future and create a lasting legacy at Georgetown.

“My wish is to see other students like me achieve great things,” she says. “It can and will happen at Georgetown. It happened to me, and that’s why I feel strongly about making this gift.”

Space to flourish

In Fall 2025, Sajan Blum (B’27) was one of 700 students to move into the new Hilltop residential community built on the site of the former Henle Village. The three dorms are Henle, Hayden, and Byrnes Hall, where Blum resides. “It’s definitely my favorite place I’ve lived in my three years here, convenient to everything,” he says, noting that it’s had a direct impact on his well-being.

Students enjoy the bustling first-floor common area, a warm and welcoming gathering space with natural elements like a plant wall and hanging fireplaces, plus lots of shared and private study spaces. It’s become a popular study destination, even for students who don’t live there.

The residents, all juniors and seniors, live in fully furnished four-bedroom, two-bedroom, or studio apartments. Each unit is equipped with a washer and dryer along with a full-size kitchen. Blum shares an apartment with three friends.

The building’s name recognizes a transformational bequest from Bill (B’72, L’81) and Lisa (SLL’80) Byrnes. “We’re very happy to help build a space that will take away some of the stress and burden that juniors and seniors feel when looking for housing on or near campus,” says Lisa Byrnes. “It’s an honor to leave a legacy that serves and accommodates more students.”

“It’s wild that one gift can benefit so many of us,” adds Blum. “I’m definitely thankful!”

A class act

When Eric Saucedo (MBA’94) served as class president while earning his MBA, the natural leader known for his warmth and generosity of spirit helped bring students together despite the program lacking many of the resources it has today.

“As a class we felt like we had to fend for ourselves,” recalls his friend and classmate Sandeep Vishnu (MBA’94). “We didn’t have a lounge, we didn’t have any buildings. We hung out on the fourth floor, really the attic in Old North.”

After graduating, Saucedo built a successful career in private equity while remaining active with his alumni community, helping to put together several networking events over the years. He was a true friend to many, and a beloved anchor who selflessly gave his time to nurturing relationships among his fellow MBAs. When he passed away unexpectedly in 2018, his classmates were devastated.

“Our class gathered to remember him,” says Vishnu. It was then that they decided to honor Saucedo through a class scholarship in his name. “Eric was the catalyst. He was the one who was organizing our reunions, the one keeping the class connected.”

Since then the group has raised more than $100,000 to establish the MBA Class of 1994 Endowed MBA Scholarship Fund to support the advancement of full-time MBA students. The Class of 1994 was the first to commit to establishing a scholarship fund, and has since inspired other classes to follow suit.

“This gift not only provides financial support to students, but creates lasting legacies that enhance our MBA community and the broader business world,” said Sudipta Dasmohapatra, senior associate dean of MBA programs. “We are grateful for the alumni from the Class of 1994 who made this gift possible. Their fundraising efforts create a cycle of giving and mentorship that will benefit future generations of MBA students for years to come.”

Vishnu says that dozens of small gifts came together to create the fund. He’s also noticed that the class has become closer and more engaged with Georgetown over the years thanks to programs like the MBA Advisory Council.

“I’m also delighted to see that other classes have picked up on the idea. Every class that’s graduating is now thinking of a class gift. We started something that has become bigger than what we are,” says Vishnu.

It’s a testament to Eric and who he was as a person.”

Inspired by a desire to help stimulate student’s scientific and discovery skills in new areas of human biochemistry, Marijn and Andra Dekkers (Parents’19, ’21, ’21) established an endowed chair in 2019 with Georgetown’s School of Health. Their gift, which also created the Dekkers Family Endowed Human Science Research Fund, supports expanded research opportunities in the Department of Human Science.

So far, two scientists have held the Dekkers Endowed Chair in Human Science. The first was then-Assistant Professor Blythe Shepard in 2019, who came to Georgetown two years earlier to start her own research lab focused on cellular signaling as a means to regulate kidney and liver physiology. She had been part of a team of researchers who were the first to discover that microscopic olfactory receptors (the kind found in the nose that allow organisms to smell) are also present in the kidney—findings that are helping transform scientists’ understanding of therapeutic agents that help reduce blood sugar in diabetic patients.

The resources provided by the endowed chair facilitated her mentorship of more than 20 undergraduate students in the lab.

“The Dekkers Endowed Chair made it possible for me to make great strides in my research endeavors while mentoring the future generation of scholars and scientists in the Department of Human Science,” notes Shepard, who is now an associate professor.

Following Shepard’s five-year term, Georgetown awarded the Dekkers Endowed Chair to Associate Professor Jan LaRocque in 2024 to support her research on genome integrity.

“Our genomes experience a large amount of DNA damage,” LaRocque explains. “The ability of the cell to recognize and repair DNA damage is essential for maintenance of genomic integrity, while failures in DNA repair can lead to mutations, cell death, premature aging, and cancer.”

The Dekkers Endowed Chair in Human Science supports student-driven investigations of the fundamental processes that maintain our genome, she notes—specifically how the cell recognizes and repairs DNA double-strand breaks. In 2025 the funds provided research stipends for LaRocque’s mentees, allowing them to continue their research projects during the summer months.

LaRocque has mentored dozens of undergraduate students during her time at Georgetown, co-authoring peer-reviewed articles and encouraging students to present their research findings at conferences.

She also serves as faculty co-advisor of the school’s annual Undergraduate Research Conference (URC), which provides Georgetown students from health- and science-related majors the opportunity to share their research with peers and faculty. A record 109 Georgetown students presented their work at the 2025 daylong exhibition.

“It’s such an important skill to learn how to translate complex research into something that is digestible to a general audience,” says Tala Assaf (H’26), a Human Science major who helped organize this year’s conference. The URC’s presentations and poster sessions offer “a unique opportunity to explain our research, an opportunity most undergraduates don’t have, but we’re fortunate to have at Georgetown.”