UNK Chancellor Neal Schnoor and UNMC interim Chancellor H. Dele Davies shared a joint proclamation today recognizing Ruth Scott and her family for the profound and lasting impact they’ve made on both campuses and the entire University of Nebraska System.
Numerous projects and initiatives have benefited from their generosity, including the Douglas A. Kristensen Rural Health Education Complex, which went from dream to reality thanks to a lead gift from the William and Ruth Scott Family Foundation.
Schnoor and former UNK Chancellor Doug Kristensen also presented Ruth with the Ron and Carol Cope Cornerstone of Excellence Award – the university’s highest honor.
Ruth Scott Bio
Ruth Scott is a longtime philanthropist whose generosity has made a transformational impact across the University of Nebraska System and the state of Nebraska. A native of Ashland, she earned her bachelor’s degree in education from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 1951 before beginning her career as a teacher. She later founded the Omaha Bridge Studio, where she continues to teach the game she believes everyone should learn.
Ruth and her late husband, Bill Scott, are among Nebraska’s most influential philanthropists, focusing their giving on education, children, healthcare and community well-being.
Bill Scott, also an Ashland native, earned his business degree from UNL in 1953. He joined the Buffett Partnership in 1959 and later Berkshire Hathaway in 1970, where he worked until the early 1990s. Together, Ruth and Bill built a legacy of quiet, meaningful philanthropy that continues to advance Nebraska’s health, education and vitality.
The Scotts’ sustained generosity has benefited students, faculty and programs on every NU campus. In 2009, they were recognized with the Regents Medal – the NU System’s highest honor.
Their recent philanthropic contributions have profoundly strengthened the UNK and UNMC partnership on the Kearney campus, making a significant and lasting impact on rural health education.
- 2014: $1.5 million gift to the UNK Health Science Education Complex Challenge Fund.
- 2022: $10 million gift to the UNK/UNMC Health Science Education Center II.
- 2022: Creation of the Ruth and Bill Scott Medal for Lifetime Achievement in Philanthropy.