Scott Ritter ’12

On football game days, Scott Ritter can be found at Blondies, a sports bar on Manhattan’s Upper West Side where Wildcats gather. Even 800 miles from Evanston, Ritter shows his purple pride.

A graduate of the School of Communication, Ritter now works in strategic communications and branding in New York City. After making his senior class gift in 2012, he realized the importance of making a gift every year. During his first year as an alumnus, he set up a recurring gift. His consecutive giving since graduation has given him Infinity Status and bronze-level membership in NU Loyal.

As a student, Ritter engaged in numerous on-campus activities, including Dance Marathon, fraternity life, and club baseball. “My extracurricular life added a lot of value on top of the education I received — opportunities both inside and outside the classroom. Those activities helped me grow.” Those activities also prompted Ritter to direct his gift to the Student Life Gift Fund. “I believe that philanthropy is important,” he says. “I benefited from the Northwestern community — it helped make me who I am, and I want to provide those same opportunities to current students.”

In addition to his yearly gift, Ritter stays connected in other ways. He volunteered for his class’s first reunion, which he says was a great chance to see old friends and make new ones. He also attends Northwestern Alumni Association events in New York and, of course, cheers for the Wildcats at Blondies. In the future, Ritter says he’d like to become a mentor to undergraduates involved in programs such as Dance Marathon.

“I’m happy to give back,” he says. “The University invested in me. And I want to pay that investment forward.”