Students 2024
INCREASING ACCESS TO HIGHER EDUCATION
Former Lindner Scholar Brook Colangelo, B.A. '00
Sustaining a Legacy of Success
Brook Colangelo, B.A. ’00, is a leader in digital transformation. During the rise of the internet, he helped build the Democratic Party’s technology, pioneered the first social media-driven national political convention, and served as President Barack Obama’s inaugural White House Chief Information Officer.
Yet, his journey from GW to the White House was nearly derailed.
After just one year at GW, Colangelo knew the university had opened new doors for his future. During his first year, while pursuing a degree in political communication, he served as Vice President of Thurston Hall and worked as a university tour guide while interning for Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi.
But as he prepared for his second year at GW, Colangelo’s financial aid package fell short, and he worried his GW journey might end. Good news came in the form of the Thaddeus A. and Mary Jean Lindner Scholarship. Established by former parent and Trustee Emeritus Thaddeus Lindner, B.A. ’51, HON ’94, and his wife, Mary Jean, the scholarship supported Colangelo for the next three years.
“The Lindners exemplify GW values,” Colangelo said. “Their GW experience helped them succeed, and they used that success to help hundreds of future students get a great GW education. It is humbling and inspiring to be a part of their story.”
More than 200 GW students have received Lindner Scholarships since 1992. Recipients have gone on to hold senior positions in the U.S. government, Fortune 500 companies, the entertainment and sports industries, and organizations impacting sustainability, public health, and economic empowerment.
Brook Colangelo’s career has followed that successful trajectory. He has been named among the top 50 Most Powerful LGBT People by Out Magazine, Computerworld’s Top 100 IT Leaders, Inspire’s Boston Global CIO of the Year, and Boston Business Journal LGBT Trailblazer.
Colangelo now serves as CIO of the Waters Corporation and sits on the Board of Directors for ISO New England and Somos, Inc.
“GW gave me my confidence and helped me transform into the person I am now. I’m really, really thankful for that opportunity and for the scholarship that made it possible.”
— Brook Colangelo, B.A. ’00
Since 1953, more than 500 GW students have benefited from the Wolcott Foundation Fellowship program. Thanks to a $4 million gift to GW’s endowment from the Wolcott Foundation in 2023, more students can pursue careers in public service for generations to come.
About 70% of GW students receive aid thanks to philanthropy and institutional commitments.
1,182 GW students received funding from endowed scholarships in 2023-24.
In the past three years, 128 new scholarship endowments were created, providing critical student support and helping open the doors to a GW education to talented young people in perpetuity.
