Lukas Anisansel excelled in math, science, and statistics at his high school in Long Island, New York. When a family friend suggested engineering as a career path, he turned to Google and discovered industrial engineering. It seemed like an ideal fit because he loved solving puzzles.

Google also revealed that Georgia Tech had the top program in the field.

“I wanted to leave New York for college, so Atlanta was intriguing,” Anisansel said. “I visited with my dad and loved that it’s a campus within a city, but the city doesn’t run through campus.” 

Quickly, Anisansel narrowed his choices to Georgia Tech and Boston’s Northeastern University. He was mindful of his family’s finances and younger sisters’ desire to also attend college. That put Tech at disadvantage because it hadn’t offered a scholarship. 

Then, a surprise email changed everything: The College of Engineering had named Anisansel a Dean’s Scholar and was offering him $10,000 per year toward his education. 

“That sealed my decision,” he said. “Suddenly our college investment felt a lot less daunting.”

Now, three and a half years later, Anisansel is preparing to graduate. His journey, and many similar ones, were shaped by an ambitious goal set by the College just before Anisansel arrived on campus. It was supposed to take six years to achieve. Instead, it took just four, and it will change the lives of Anisansel and other future Georgia Tech engineers. 

The Flanagans’ gift endowed six scholarships initially, and the first cohort enrolled in 2020. The remainder of the gift covered additional scholarships and support to get the program off and running.

Then, in 2021, Raheem Beyah became dean of the College and Southern Company Chair. He saw a gap between Georgia Tech’s President’s Scholarship — a merit-based full ride — and the Tech Promise Scholarship for in-state students based on need.

“Georgia Tech was losing too many great engineering students to peer institutions because they could provide better financial packages,” Beyah said. “We needed to find a pathway that filled that gap between the President’s Scholarship and Tech Promise Scholarship. The Dean’s Scholars Program was the answer.”

So he set a lofty goal: endow 100 additional Dean’s scholarships by the end of Georgia Tech’s $2 billion Transforming Tomorrow capital campaign. That meant raising nearly $30 million within six years. 

The Flanagans stepped up first, gifting an additional $1 million to launch a 1-to-1 matching program that encouraged others to participate. Within months, eight new endowed scholarships were established. Momentum accelerated, as did awareness of the program. 

A gift from a corporate partner in 2023 added 16 more scholarships and established a matching program for other donors. Then the Georgia Tech Foundation provided a match of its own. 

Now, with more than two years before the end of the capital campaign, the College has met its goal. The Dean’s Scholars Program crossed the century mark on Halloween, Beyah’s last day as dean before starting as Georgia Tech’s new provost. 

In total, 108 endowed scholarships are now on the books. More than 20 corporations and individuals have contributed. One of them is Andrea Laliberte, an ISyE graduate and longtime supporter of the College. 

“Having a cohort-based environment for my scholarship recipients is a key reason why I support the Dean’s Scholars program,” Laliberte said. “In addition to financial support, they have opportunities to grow as leaders.”

Jason Schmitt’s gift of $1.2 million is endowing eight scholarships. He left his home state of Louisiana as a high school senior expecting to be a mechanical engineer in the aerospace industry. Instead, Georgia Tech put him on a cybersecurity path. More than 20 years in the field have made him the CEO at Black Duck, a software security company. 

“It was a big risk and financial struggle for me to attend Georgia Tech from a modest upbringing with out-of-state tuition,” said Schmitt, who received his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering and a master’s in computer science. “I imagine that there are plenty of kids like me that could benefit from Tech in the ways that I have, but might not have the money or support to do it. That feels like a tragedy to me. I chose to endow scholarships as a way to share the gifts that I’ve received from Tech with some future engineers and leaders who would miss out on the opportunity to experience this life-changing place.”