Yale University’s drama school became a free institution and took on a new name this week, thanks to a $150 million gift from entertainment mogul David Geffen, reported Yale News.
Now called the David Geffen School of Drama at Yale, the school’s graduate drama department was founded in 1924 and became its own school in 1955. In 1966, the theater school opened the Yale Reparatory Theater, which has produced Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize winning plays.
As of this year, Yale’s drama school offers training in 10 disciplines related to theater and typically enrolls 200 students. Notable alumni include Lupita Nyong’o, Chris Noth and Frances McDormand, according to BuzzFeed.
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Both present and future students at the David Geffen School of Drama at Yale will not have to pay tuition, said Yale News. During the 2019-20 school year, tuition cost $32,800 per year, not including the cost of books and living expenses.
“David Geffen’s visionary generosity ensures that artists of extraordinary potential from all socioeconomic backgrounds will be able to cultivate their talent at Yale,” said Yale President Peter Salovey of the donation.
Geffen is the founder or co-founder of several entertainment companies, including Geffen Records, Asylum Records and DreamWorks. He also taught a course at Yale in the 1970s. According to Forbes, the 78-year-old is a Brooklyn native and Beverly Hills resident who previously donated $150 million to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the largest donation in the museum’s history.
Yale News said Geffen’s donation to the drama school is “the largest on record in the history of American Theater.”
“It’s an honor to partner with Yale University to create the first tuition-free drama school of its kind in the nation,” said Geffen. “Yale is well known for having one of the most respected drama programs in the country. So, when they approached me with this opportunity, I knew Yale was the right place to begin to change the way we think about funding arts education.”
Student loan debt is a $1.6 trillion crisis that impact 44 million Americans, according to CNBC. Recently, President Joe Biden has called on Congress to allow students to attend community college for free as part of the American Families Plan.
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