CHICAGO – May 9, 2024 –Pritzker Military Foundation and its founder, Colonel (IL) Jennifer N. Pritzker, IL ARNG (Retired), announced a challenge grant that will match private cash donations of up to $250,000 to fund a new scholarship at Norwich University, a not-for-profit, private military college in Northfield, VT. The grant will create an endowed fund for a memorial scholarship in the name of GEN Gordon R. Sullivan, a 1959 graduate of Norwich University and a highly decorated veteran of the U.S. Army.  Known as the “Sullivan Scholarship,” the scholarship will provide merit-based awards to both cadets and civilians in good academic standing, with preference given to students from Massachusetts – the birthplace of GEN Sullivan. The challenge grant period opened on April 1, 2024, and will close on March 31, 2027.

GEN Gordon R. Sullivan, who passed away in January 2024, was a beloved and well-respected veteran leader decorated with over two dozen awards and ribbons. Among these honors were five Distinguished Service Medals, a Bronze Star, Purple Heart, and Combat Infantry Badge. Notably, he was twice honored with the prestigious Distinguished Service Medal by the Army, and received one each from the Department of Defense, U.S. Navy, and Coast Guard. He spent more than 36 years on active duty in the United States Army, culminating in a prestigious appointment as 32nd Chief of Staff of the Army and a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff during the Clinton Administration. After he retired from active duty, he continued to support military interests, such as a tenure as chairman of the board of trustees at Norwich University. He also co-authored the bestselling book “Hope Is Not a Method: What Business Leaders Can Learn from America’s Army “ (Random House, 1996).

“GEN Sullivan was a true American hero. He went far beyond the call of duty to serve his country in innumerable ways, and provided leadership, mentorship, and the transfer of wisdom to service members and civilians alike,” said Pritzker. “We are honored to support the Sullivan Scholarship to forge new paths to higher education for the next generation while celebrating GEN Sullivan’s memory and legacy.”

Norwich University is a not-for-profit 501 (c) (3) corporation and private university offering baccalaureate and graduate degree programs for students in a Corps of Cadets and civilian students. It was founded in 1819 by Captain Alden Partridge of the U.S. Army, making it the oldest private military college in the U.S. It’s also known as the birthplace of the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC). 

“The Scholarship in honor of GEN Sullivan not only recognizes our very special Norwich soldier and leader but will ensure that other worthy students can have the opportunity to graduate from Norwich and go on to serve America just as GEN Sullivan,” said Norwich President Emeritus RADM Rich Schneider.

The Pritzker Military Foundation is a private foundation that accepts applications by invitation only. There is no open application period.

About the Pritzker Military Foundation 

The Pritzker Military Foundation seeks to support the work of both the Pritzker Military Museum & Library—and similar nonprofit organizations—to preserve American military history, restore historic military artifacts and make them accessible to the public, and provide services and essential resources to active-duty military, veterans and families of service members in all branches of the United States Armed Forces. To learn more, visit www.pritzkermilitaryfoundation.org.