On June 11, 2026, Drexel University received a $112.6 million gift from The Howley Foundation — the largest in the university's history. The gift creates more than 55,000 square feet of new engineering labs (including a flight simulator and robotics facility) and sets aside $76 million in need-based scholarships targeting students from Philadelphia and Cleveland. For first-generation and low-income students considering engineering, this is one of the most concrete scholarship expansions of the year.
Most coverage of large university gifts focuses on the building name. This one is different because most of the money goes directly to students.
W. Nicholas "Nick" Howley — a Drexel class of 1975 alumnus, current trustee, and Havertown, Pennsylvania native — along with his wife Lorie and daughter Meg Howley (Drexel '10) gave $112.6 million through The Howley Foundation to Drexel's College of Engineering and Computing. The gift was announced June 11, 2026.1
The college will be renamed the Nick Howley College of Engineering and Computing.
The Money Breakdown
The gift splits roughly two ways:
$36 million-plus for facilities. More than 55,000 square feet of new classroom, laboratory, and collaborative learning spaces will be built along Market Street and JFK Boulevard in Philadelphia. The centerpiece, called the Howley Family Immersive Learning Center, will include a robotics facility, a flight simulator, labs for jet engine study, chemical engineering labs, and soil and concrete analysis labs.2
$76 million for scholarships and student programs. This portion targets need-based scholarships for students enrolled in the renamed college, with a specific focus on students from Philadelphia and Cleveland. The gift builds on The Howley Foundation's 2024 program, which already provides full scholarships to graduates of seven Philadelphia-area high schools.
What This Means for Students Right Now
If you're in Philadelphia or Cleveland, this matters immediately. The existing Howley Scholars program already covers full tuition for graduates of seven Philadelphia-area high schools. The new $76 million expands the pool significantly. If you're a rising senior from either city and engineering is your direction, contact Drexel's financial aid office to ask about need-based eligibility under the expanded Howley fund before the next application cycle.
If you're from anywhere else, Drexel's need-based aid just got substantially larger. The Howley gift does not appear restricted only to Philly and Cleveland students — the language covers those schools "primarily," not exclusively. Worth a direct inquiry.
For current Drexel engineering students, the facilities are projected to open over the coming years. Students who start now will likely finish their degrees using these labs.
Drexel's co-op program is one of the oldest and most structured in the country. Students typically complete two or three six-month paid work rotations in their field before graduating. New labs in robotics, aerospace, and chemical engineering will give co-op candidates concrete, hands-on experience to discuss in interviews. When evaluating this school, look at co-op employer lists, not just rankings.
Three Things Most Families Miss
First: this gift also targets Cleveland students. Most people think of Drexel as a Philadelphia school and stop there. But the Howley Foundation's new scholarship focus explicitly includes Cleveland. If you're in northeast Ohio and considering engineering programs, most lists will point you toward Case Western Reserve or Ohio State. Drexel now belongs on that list for qualifying students.
Second: the trajectory matters more than the current ranking. When a school receives a gift this large for a specific department, what usually follows is upgraded faculty recruiting, stronger industry partnerships, and improved placement data — all of which tend to move rankings over three to five years. Students enrolling now get the new facilities without the post-investment competition surge.
Third: the existing Howley Scholars pipeline is a model worth understanding. The 2024 $15 million gift launched a full-scholarship program for graduates of seven Philadelphia high schools. That program is now folded into a much larger fund. If your school is already in the pipeline, ask your counselor about the application process. If it isn't, call Drexel and ask how need-based Howley scholarships work for students outside the named feeder schools.
What to Do Next
- Check whether your high school is part of the existing Howley Scholars program by contacting Drexel's financial aid office directly
- Review Drexel's co-op placement data and which companies have hired students in your target engineering field
- Use our guide on how to compare financial aid offers from colleges before making any decision
- Look at which college majors lead to the highest salaries to understand the earning picture for engineering graduates
- If you're first-generation, see our guide to colleges with the strongest first-gen support programs — Drexel's scholarship expansion is directly relevant
- For a broader search for engineering scholarships, start with our college scholarship guide for 2026
- If you're trying to determine how much borrowing makes sense for an engineering degree, our guide on how much student loan debt is too much is a useful frame
Details on expanded Howley Fund eligibility are expected from Drexel later this summer. Watch financialaid.drexel.edu for updates.
Footnotes
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Philadelphia Inquirer. (2026, June 11). A Havertown native is giving historic $112.6 million to Drexel, months after his record gift to St. Joe's Prep. The Philadelphia Inquirer. https://www.inquirer.com/education/drexel-gift-howley-foundation-engineering-computing-20260611.html ↩
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Drexel University. (2026, June). Largest gift in Drexel's history establishes Nick Howley College of Engineering and Computing. Drexel University News. https://drexel.edu/news/archive/2026/June/Howley-Foundation-gift-CoEC ↩
