Penn receives $20 million gift to help make tuition more affordable

The University of Pennsylvania announced a $20 million gift from a billionaire Wharton alumnus that will help make tuition more affordable for more than 1,000 families annually.

The gift from alumnus Greg Mondre and his wife, Alexandra Mondre, will provide endowed support for Penn’s 2024 Quaker Commitment to expand financial aid for students, the university said.

The gift will establish the Mondre Family Initiative, and Penn will rename its student support office in the Franklin Building as the Mondre Family Student Service Center, the university said.

Greg Mondre, who grew up in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., graduated from the Wharton School in 1996. He went on to become managing partner and co-CEO of Silver Lake, a private equity firm managing assets reportedly worth $110 billion. Forbes reported his net worth at $2.5 billion. Alexandra Mondre is a managing partner at AGM Ventures.

“Penn opened doors that shaped the course of my life, and I believe in expanding that opportunity for others,” Greg Mondre said in a statement.

“Too many middle-income students and their families face difficult trade-offs that limit how they approach, choose, and navigate a path through higher education. Alexandra and I are proud to support Penn’s leadership in addressing this challenge by working to ensure students can fully participate in everything the University has to offer,” Mondre said.

In 2024, Penn expanded tuition aid through policies known as the Quaker Commitment. Since then, the university said, Penn has been effectively tuition-free for families earning up to $200,000 with typical assets, and home equity is no longer included in financial aid calculations.

The university said that for the last full academic year ending in 2025, Penn awarded $330 million in grant-based aid to 46% of all undergraduate students. The average amount received was $72,155, the university said.

Penn also provided $338 million in financial aid to graduate and professional students, plus an additional $90 million in stipend support, the university said.

The university said that “the vast majority” of the $20 million Mondre gift will establish the Mondre Family Initiative to “sustain and advance a suite of middle-income financial aid policies.”

Penn president J. Larry Jameson said in a statement: “We are deeply grateful to Greg and Alexandra for their dedication to expanding opportunity. This gift is an acceleration of a vision to make higher education accessible to all, and it will help us set a new national standard for supporting middle-income families.”