A groundbreaking $5 million donation from Annette Beus and her family is set to open doors for aspiring medical professionals at Arizona State University (ASU). The funding will support scholarships for students enrolling in ASU’s newly established School of Medicine and Advanced Medical Engineering a school designed to blend medicine, engineering, and advanced technology.
This gift is part of a larger vision to ensure financial support for students, attract top talent, and develop the next wave of physician-engineers equipped to lead healthcare innovation.
Big Plans: $20 Million in Scholarship Support by 2026
Arizona State University is launching a major fundraising effort to support future medical students. The Beus family’s $5 million donation kickstarts this initiative, with ASU planning to raise an additional $15 million by July 2026 bringing the total scholarship fund to $20 million.
This funding will fully cover tuition for 72 students across the first two cohorts in the new School of Medicine and Advanced Medical Engineering, which plans to welcome its first class in Fall 2026 (pending accreditation from the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME). To learn more or contribute to this challenge, visit the ASU Foundation’s scholarship initiative page.
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A Different Kind of Medical School
The School of Medicine and Advanced Medical Engineering isn’t your typical medical program. It’s designed to train physician-engineers future doctors with strong foundations in medicine, technology, and engineering.
Students will learn not just clinical care, but also how to apply artificial intelligence, biomedical engineering, and data science to solve real-world healthcare challenges. This integrated approach prepares graduates to:
- Design better medical tools and systems
- Improve patient outcomes using data-driven methods
- Lead innovation in both clinical and research settings
This school is a part of ASU Health, a university-wide initiative focused on advancing healthcare access, education, and innovation.
Why This Matters for Students
Medical school is expensive, and for many students, cost is a major barrier. These scholarships aim to lift that burden giving students the chance to pursue their dreams without being weighed down by tuition debt.
Sarah Hollingsworth Lisanby, the founding dean of the school, emphasized how this funding opens doors:
“Words cannot convey what it means for a student to be able to fulfill their dream of becoming a doctor by removing the financial barrier of tuition.”
With reduced financial pressure, students will have the freedom to:
- Choose their specialty based on passion, not paychecks
- Focus on learning and innovation
- Participate in groundbreaking research without financial stress
The Beus Family’s Legacy of Giving
Annette Beus and her late husband, Leo, have a strong history of supporting ASU and its mission. Their past donations have helped shape some of the university’s most forward-thinking initiatives:
- Beus Center for Law and Society: Established through their support, it now houses ASU’s Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law.
- Beus Compact X-ray Free Electron Laser Lab: Their funding helped develop one of the world’s first compact X-ray laser labs, supporting advanced scientific research.
- Beus Center for Cosmic Foundations: Created to explore the origins of stars and galaxies, advancing space science and education.
Despite their broad impact, scholarships remain especially meaningful to Annette Beus. She believes in supporting young people who want to make a difference. “Helping students access education especially in life-changing fields like medicine is something I’ve always believed in,” she said.
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Transforming Healthcare, One Student at a Time
Beus hopes this investment will inspire more donors to support ASU’s bold approach to medical education. She believes physician-engineers trained in this new model will improve health outcomes in Arizona and across the globe.
“I want these students to have the freedom to dive into their studies, investigate new research, and make real change in medicine,” Beus said. “Health care needs better tools and smarter approaches, and ASU’s program is stepping up to make that happen.”
Shaping the Future Through Philanthropy
Gretchen Buhlig, CEO of the ASU Foundation, called the Beus family’s gift “a powerful example of what philanthropy can achieve.” She highlighted how the donation will directly support student success while promoting innovation through engineering, technology, and AI.
“This gift creates real opportunity for students,” Buhlig said. “It also supports a long-term vision to improve lives through education, technology, and compassionate care.”
This new scholarship initiative is more than just financial aid, it’s a step toward reimagining what a medical education can be. With strong support from donors like the Beus family and an innovative academic model, ASU is preparing students to lead the future of medicine.
As the university works toward its $20 million goal, the impact of this effort will be felt not just by students, but by the communities and healthcare systems they will one day serve.
