Alec Baldwin Donates Second $1 Million to Alma Mater Tisch School of the Arts to Expand Baldwin Drama Scholarship Fund

Tisch School of the Arts, the premiere institution of the performing, cinematic, and recording arts, has announced another gift of $1 million from Mr. Alec Baldwin ('94/Hon '10) in support of the Alec Baldwin Drama Scholarship Fund and the Talent Identification Process (TIP) at Tisch.

Of the gift, Mr. Baldwin said, "At a time when funds for higher education appear to be more difficult than ever to access, it's my great pleasure to do what I can to bring the best possible candidates into the Tisch program, a program which I believe is the best in the country."

Mr. Baldwin's original gift of $1 million dollars in 2009 marked the launch of the Tisch School's ambitious and aggressive Talent Identification Process (TIP). The Talent Identification Process is the method through which the school identifies, recruits, admits, yields, supports, and retains the most talented students in the country. Efforts to bring high performing/high need students to Tisch are supported by forward-thinking philanthropists like Mr. Baldwin, who believe that bringing the best artists to Tisch strengthens the learning experience for all students, and broadens the range of exciting new artistic voices on the American cultural scene. Together with donors like Mr. Baldwin, the Tisch School has been on a mission to dramatically expand resources to identify and support the country's most talented young artists, regardless of their financial circumstances.

Tisch sends scouts across the country in pursuit of the best of the best, identifying centers of excellence – schools, community based organizations, arts organizations, youth groups – whose adult leaders help the school identify the country's most talented young people who might not see the school as a reasonable aspiration because of their financial circumstances.

To assist in student identification and preparation, Tisch also provides residential summer programs and spring Saturday programs for high school students – "pipeline programs" – which level the playing field for talented applicants who otherwise may not have the resources to receive formal pre-college training.

Admitted candidates identified through the Talent Identification Process who are considered high performance and high need are eligible to receive one of a number of specially endowed scholarships intended to help make a Tisch education possible, including the Alec Baldwin Drama Scholarship Fund.

In addition to his generous financial gift, Mr. Baldwin has met with Alec Baldwin Drama Scholars and other scholarship recipients, hosting an intimate roundtable lunch. This spring Alec will teach a drama class at the Tisch school.

"With the support of donors like Alec Baldwin, the Talent Identification Process has transformed from a program to a systemic mandate," said Dean Mary Schmidt Campbell. "Alec's generous and transformative gift enables us to think about arts recruitment in the same way as a top athletic program scouts talent, providing scholarship support to the most exciting young voices, who will in turn become the next generation of leaders in their fields. His talent and generosity are examples for all of our students."

It is Mr. Baldwin's belief that in addition to excellent training, achievement of one's goals in the performing arts requires an unwavering work ethic, development of leadership skills, willingness to collaborate, the ability to tolerate risk, and the capacity to work with constructive criticism.

The endowed fund will provide tuition assistance to students who best exhibit the characteristics noted above, are in good academic standing, and demonstrate financial need. Special consideration will be given to students from economically disadvantaged families or who are the first in their families to attend a college or university.

As one of the nation's leading centers of undergraduate and graduate study in the performing and cinematic arts, Tisch offers programs that incorporate state-of-the-art facilities, a collaboratively oriented community of award-winning faculty members, internship opportunities with established professionals, and the incomparable artistic and cultural resources of New York City. The Alec Baldwin Drama Scholarship Fund continues to support those students who would not otherwise be able to afford an NYU Tisch education.