Susan L. Poland

“My best memories are of living on a staircase whose residents were composed entirely of women from several different countries. My neighbors included a Greek astrophysicist, a Swiss statistician, and an American engineer. I count the friends I made at Churchill among my close friends today. The aesthetic component of Cambridge also makes for very happy memories—cycling to lectures and supervisions on winter mornings when every branch of every tree glittered with frost.”

A longtime supporter of Churchill and Collegiate Cambridge, Susan is also a member of The 1209 Society. Members of The Society have generously included their College and/or The University in their estate planning, recognizing the importance of Collegiate Cambridge.

Susan’s commitment comes in the form of a bequest to Cambridge in America to support undergraduate law studentships at Churchill. Acutely aware that the cost of an undergraduate education at Cambridge can be prohibitive and a source of stress for many students, by joining The 1209 Society, Susan endeavors to make a difference.

“At the individual level, a student who is distracted by financial worries has a personal burden that even moderately successful graduates should try to lighten. By leaving in my will to Churchill a large part of the earnings from my career, I hope to be able to ‘pay it forward’ to students of a future generation.”

Paying it forward—philanthropy—is a deeply held value for Susan, and one that she embodies. “I was convinced from a very early age that we exist for a purpose. Part of that purpose has to be to help others. I want to be part of that and part of moving the world forward if I can.”

— Susan L. Poland (Churchill 1977)