UM alumna donates $1.5 million to university

By Aaron Harris

Susan Smith, a member of the University of Michigan’s class of 1963, is giving $1.5 million to her alma mater to establish the Susan Meredith Smith Professorship in Actuarial Science in the school’s department of mathematics.

Smith also participated in UM’s Donor Challenge, which matched her $1.5 million gift with an additional $500,000.

“Smith’s gift to create this professorship will add (additional) strength to an already nationally prominent program,” said Terrence McDonald, dean of the College of Literature, Science and the Arts.

The gift moves the college closer to its goal of raising $300 million during the universitywide $2.5 billion “Michigan Difference” campaign.

“I wanted to give something back to the college that prepared me for the career that made this gift possible,” said Smith, who holds a degree in actuarial science.

She was vice president of Towers Perrin, a professional services firm in Philadelphia, before retiring in 1992 to serve on the Actuarial Advisory Board for UM.