The University of Nebraska Foundation has conferred its top awards on Omaha philanthropist Ruth Scott and her late husband, Bill, and retired University of Nebraska leader Susan Fritz, PhD.
The awards were announced Nov. 1 during a Celebration of the University of Nebraska at the Coliseum on the University of Nebraska-Lincoln campus.
Ruth Scott and Bill Scott, Perry W. Branch Award for Distinguished Volunteer Service
Ruth Scott and her late husband, Bill, were recognized with the Perry W. Branch Award for Distinguished Volunteer Service. The award is named for Perry W. Branch, the first employee and executive director of the University of Nebraska Foundation. The honor serves to commemorate the importance of volunteers to the organization.
The Scotts have been among the most transformative donors in the University of Nebraska’s history. In 2009, the University of Nebraska Board of Regents presented Ruth and Bill Scott with the Regents Medal, which honors individuals whose service to the university has provided exceptional benefits in furthering the goals and mission of the institution.
Through personal gifts and support from the William and Ruth Scott Family Foundation, the couple’s generosity has benefited students, faculty and programs on all campuses of the University of Nebraska System. Just a few examples of their giving include the Ruth and Bill Scott Student Plaza at UNMC; the UNMC Student Life Center redevelopment and expansion; the UNMC Munroe-Meyer Institute; the UNMC College of Nursing facility in Lincoln; the Frederick F. Paustian Inflammatory Bowel Disease Center; the leadership gift for the Health Science Education Complex at the University of Nebraska at Kearney; the leadership gift for the Douglas A. Kristensen Rural Health Education Complex (or what Bill Scott affectionately named “The Doug”); the Dreamer’s Pathway Scholarship and Project Achieve to support first-generation students, students with limited incomes and students with disabilities at the University of Nebraska at Omaha; the Jan and John Christensen Concert Hall in the redeveloped Strauss Performing Arts Center; the Barbara Weitz Community Engagement Center; the Biomechanics Research Building and its expansion; the Barbara Hibner Soccer Stadium in Lincoln; the Gnotobiotic Mouse Facility and the Nebraska Food for Health Center at UNL; and the Cherish Nebraska exhibit space at Morrill Hall.
The Scotts are alumni of the University of Nebraska and Ashland natives. Ruth Scott earned her bachelor’s degree in education in 1951, went on to teach school and later founded the Omaha Bridge Studio. Bill Scott graduated in 1953 from the College of Business. He joined the Buffett Partnership in 1959 and Berkshire Hathaway in 1970, where he remained until the early 1990s. Bill died in February at the age of 93.
“Ruth and the late Bill Scott are a treasure to Nebraska and its only public university,” said Brian F. Hastings, president and CEO of the University of Nebraska Foundation. “Not only have they made projects possible through their generous giving, but on multiple occasions, they have selflessly and voluntarily offered to give away naming rights for projects to inspire other philanthropists and community leaders to follow their lead in giving. The University of Nebraska is a different and better university today because of Ruth and Bill Scott.”
Susan Fritz, PhD, , Harlan J. Noddle Award for Distinguished Development Service
Susan Fritz, PhD, received the Harlan J. Noddle Award for Distinguished Development Service. The Noddle Award is named in honor of Harlan J. Noddle, a longtime University of Nebraska advocate and former chair of the foundation’s Board of Directors. The award is given to a university or foundation employee who provides exemplary service in development while demonstrating the values of initiative, honesty, integrity, compassion, commitment, foresight, tolerance and diligence.
Dr. Fritz was the first woman to lead the university system after being appointed in 2019. During her tenure as interim president, Dr. Fritz championed university-wide priorities of student access and success, launching a statewide partnership focused on timely graduation, advocating to elected leaders for greater investment in scholarships and presiding over gains in student diversity. She also has been actively involved in Women Investing in Nebraska, including serving as chair in 2022-23. She was instrumental in planning for the University of Nebraska’s current fundraising campaign, Only in Nebraska: A Campaign for Our University’s Future.
Dr. Fritz also served as provost of the University of Nebraska System and as a professor of Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communication at UNL. She retired in 2021, capping a 32-year career at the university. Dr. Fritz is a three-time graduate, receiving her bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees from UNL. She co-owns and operates with her husband Fritz Family Farms near Crete, Nebraska, where the couple grow corn, soybeans and alfalfa and run a cow/calf operation.
“As the first woman to lead the University of Nebraska, Susan Fritz is a trailblazer,” Hastings said. “She has also been a great partner with the foundation in our relationship-building and fundraising efforts. She fundamentally understands the importance of the university to our state and its people, as well as the power of philanthropy in advancing the university. Susan was instrumental in our launch of the Only in Nebraska campaign, the largest and most impactful campaign in university history. Her longtime advocacy for public higher education and students will leave a lasting mark on the University of Nebraska.”
Ruth and Bill Scott Medal
During the Nov. 1 celebration, the University of Nebraska Foundation also announced a new award, the Ruth and Bill Scott Medal.
The Ruth and Bill Scott Medal is named in honor of the Scotts, celebrating their generosity and vision in advancing the University of Nebraska. This award will perpetually recognize their exemplary lifetime achievements in philanthropy by honoring others who embody a philanthropic spirit.
The Scott legacy of philanthropy is absolutely amazing. Kudos to them for all they have done. Our university would not be the same without their incredible generosity.