BENEFACTOR REPORT

Class of 1955 Reunion Scholarship Fund

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George Q. Daley, MD, PhD
Dean of the Faculty of Medicine
Caroline Shields Walker Professor of Medicine

June 2026
George Q. Daley, MD, PhD

Dear Mitch,

Sincerely,

Our financial aid program reflects our core belief that cost should never be a barrier to attending Harvard Medical School. Because of your class, we can welcome outstanding students regardless of their financial means and enable them to begin their training with purpose and focus. 

As the representative of your class’s fundraising efforts, thank you for your generous commitment to financial aid at Harvard Medical School and for your support through the Class of 1955 Reunion Scholarship Fund. I am grateful for your leadership and for your classmates' collective philanthropy. I’m pleased to share this report on how your class’s philanthropy is making a difference in our students’ lives and in the future of medicine.

Harvard Medical School is proud to offer one of the most generous financial aid programs in the country. In fiscal year 2025, we awarded $31.2 million in MD financial aid, placing HMS sixth nationally in total MD scholarship funding awarded. Seventy-one percent of our MD students receive aid, with an average annual scholarship of $61,758, and half of our scholarship recipients qualify for our Middle Income Initiative, which adjusts the parental contribution expected from HMS families with the greatest financial need. Your class's support is essential to maintaining this level of aid and directing resources to those with the greatest need.  

Financial aid does more than ease financial pressure—it enables our students to fully engage in their education, research, and clinical experiences, and to pursue careers guided by impact and service rather than by financial constraints. Thank you to your class for helping to educate and inspire the next generation of physicians and physician-scientists.

Bailey Smith

Class of 1955 Reunion Scholarship Fund

Pathways, Class of 2028

Path to Medicine

Bailey grew up in upstate New York in a family of two public high school teachers, where education was a priority but Harvard Medical School felt far away. Years of basic science cancer research in neuro‑oncology at a biotechnology company and at UT Southwestern sparked her interest in advancing oncology care and uncovering new therapeutic targets. She remains strongly committed to oncology and now feels especially drawn to dermatologic oncology and treatment‑related skin toxicities.

Training & Development

At HMS, Bailey spent a summer in the Dermatology Oncology clinic at Dana‑Farber Cancer Institute, meeting patients with skin cancers and therapy‑related toxicities and developing a deeper interest in understanding and preventing these complications. She helped run the Genetics Interest Group, coordinating physician panels across pediatric, adult, and maternal‑fetal genetics and organizing journal clubs on new cancer‑genetics research. Outside the clinic, she is a coffee aficionado and former collegiate swimmer who still trains and cheers on Northeastern’s team.

Access & Opportunity

Bailey notes that without her HMS scholarship, she is unsure she could pursue her MD. Coming from a middle‑income family of public school teachers, she relies on support from the Class of 1955 Reunion Scholarship to study at Harvard and thrive in its supportive environment. Financial aid shields her from growing federal loan limits and funding cuts, allows her to focus on learning and community, and makes it possible to work toward global improvements in cancer care.

BS, Northeastern University (2022)

Your support of financial aid ensures that the world’s most promising students can attend Harvard Medical School, regardless of their financial means. In turn, these students, representing a wide range ofbackgrounds and perspectives go on to become innovators and leaders in the field of medicine. HMS is proud to have one of the most generous financial aid programs in the country.

 Thank you

We could not do this without you.

Class of 2029

HST

165

Students

PATHWAYS

135

30

15 students are pursuing both an MD and a PhD (MD-PhD)

14%

From groups historically underrepresented in medicine

62

Colleges

31

U.S. States

09

Countries

The Impact of Financial Aid

Average annual scholarship

$61,758

Qualify for the HMS Middle Income Initiative, which adjusts the parental contribution expected for HMS families with the greatest financial need.

50%

Come from a family whose annual income is $50,000 or less

1 in 5

Receive financial aid

71%

Student Beneficiary

The Impact

Office of Alumni Affairs and Development


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