An Inspirational Gift

DAVID J. AND MARIA

Wiegand are improbable GW Law donors. Neither they nor their children attended the law school. They aren’t lawyers themselves. Yet, through their philanthropy, they have created multiple platforms for learning to flourish at GW Law.

In 2022, the Wiegands donated $100,000 in seed money to establish the Dean Dayna Bowen Matthew Endowed Scholarship, a needbased, annual scholarship for talented minority students who have demonstrated an interest in civil rights or antitrust law. The scholarship fund is open to contributions from other donors.

“We want to help people who have the talent and ambition but do not have the means and opportunity to capitalize on their skills,” David says. “We have been especially inspired by Dean Matthew’s commitment. We believe Dean Matthew will leave an important legacy, and we wanted to support her and the law school.”

The fund will provide an annual scholarship for a law student who is a member of either the Black Law Student Association (BLSA), the Latin American Law Student Association (LALSA), the Native American Law Student Association (NALSA), or an equivalent organization.

“We hope the scholarship can become something much bigger over time than what we could make it on our own,” says Maria. “We are inspired by Dean Matthew’s vision

David J. and Maria Wiegand for the school and for her students. She is a wonderful asset to the university.”

Matthew was appreciative of the honor, noting that the Wiegands have been generous in supporting the work of GW Law as well as her own passion for creating multiple opportunities for students from different backgrounds to attend law school.

“I am deeply moved by this scholarship. While it is an honor to serve as dean, I am especially thankful that this scholarship will make it possible to attract the finest students,” Matthew says. “I am grateful beyond words to the Wiegand family for its ongoing support of GW Law.”

The Wiegands’ philanthropic relationship with GW Law began when they endowed the Harold H. Greene Professorship of Law in 2000. U.S. District Court

Judge Harold H. Greene, a drafter of landmark civil rights and voting rights legislation, is most known for his 1984 decision dismembering American Telephone and Telegraph. The ruling made it possible for the Wiegands, former AT&T employees, to start a series of telecom companies, including Pathfinder Communications.

“Looking back over our long business career, we struggled because we didn’t have college degrees. We didn’t have a network of fellow alumni,” says David, who lives with his wife in Orange County, Calif., where they focus on managing their real estate investments. “We’re really a miracle, I think. That’s why we endowed the Judge Greene professorship. He created a landscape in which, despite our lack of education, we were able to become successful.”

– Sarah Kellogg