President Traverso named a Dietrich Foundation trustee

Posted September 12, 2017 Print

GREENVILLE, Pa.-- Thiel College President Susan Traverso, Ph.D., recently joined the Board of Trustees for the Pittsburgh-based Dietrich Foundation.

The Dietrich Foundation’s primary mission is to benefit higher education, principally in the greater Pittsburgh area, by providing ongoing and increasing financial support to six educational institutions. The Foundation also distributes funds to nine other charitable beneficiaries in western Pennsylvania.

“I am honored to be a member of a select group of educational and community leaders who are acting as stewards to promote and protect the principles William Dietrich II established with the creation of this charitable trust. Dietrich’s commitment to higher education is inspiring,” Traverso said. “The 15 organizations that receive support from the foundation are part of the network that creates opportunity and provides an immeasurable return on investment for our region. I look forward to working with the Foundation to continue Dietrich’s legacy.”

The Dietrich Foundation was formed following William S. Dietrich II’s death in October 2011. The Foundation’s commitment of $25 million in endowment funds to support Thiel College was the largest in the College’s history. The endowment funds help underwrite The Kenneth ’31 and Marianna Brown ’32 Dietrich Honors Institute. The institute was named in honor of Dietrich’s parents, who were Thiel College alumni. William “Bill” S. Dietrich II was named after his grandfather, who was an executive with Greenville Steel Car from 1922-1945.

The Dietrich Foundation has been a vigorous supporter of Thiel College, a leading liberal arts college in northwest Pennsylvania. The Dietrich Foundation provided resources to help Thiel send its first student to study at England’s Oxford University in 2016.

The trustees of the Dietrich Foundation comprise five educational institution trustees and four community trustees. The educational institution representatives include representatives from the University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon University.