Student plaza named for Ruth and Bill Scott

As family lore has it, a young Ruth Scott once helped load some pesky pigs onto a truck after her exasperated father offered a handsome reward to those who could do so.

The slideshow above features images from Tuesday’s dedication ceremony for the Ruth and Bill Scott Student Plaza.

And as the legend goes, Ruth and her husband Bill used the reward, or “Pig Money,” to invest in Berkshire Hathaway.

That investment would allow the family to amass the fortune that in recent years has powered the Scott’s incredible gifts to UNMC.

“Mom and Dad, you and those pigs did a heck of a job,” John Scott said Tuesday at a ceremony in which UNMC named its student plaza the Ruth and Bill Scott Student Plaza.

Greatness embodied

“The Scotts are the epitome of greatness,” said UNMC Chancellor Harold M. Maurer, M.D. “They couldn’t care less about being in the limelight. They simply want to help others.”

The Scotts’ generosity has transformed the UNMC campus, Dr. Maurer said, as the Omaha philanthropists’ gifts have led to new buildings for four UNMC colleges:

• Medicine;
  
• Nursing;
  
• Public health; and
  
• Pharmacy.

The Scotts also provided the lead gifts for the UNMC Student Plaza and the campus art feature.

A true campus

“A decade ago, our campus was just a bunch of aging buildings with no green space,” Dr. Maurer said. “It didn’t have the feel of a college campus. Now, thanks to the Scotts, we have a real college campus with incredible new buildings and a beautiful student plaza.”

The Scotts’ philanthropy has not gone unnoticed by UNMC students.

“It is really nice to visit other top notch programs in the country and see that UNMC is now more technologically advanced due to the additions made possible by the Scott family,” said Jeremy Peterson, president of the UNMC Student Senate.