Wien Family Q&A
Since it was established in 1958 by Lawrence and Mae Wien, the Wien International Scholarship Program has provided financial assistance to help more than 800 students from all around the world attend Brandeis. The Wien family – daughter Enid and her husband, Lester Morse, and daughter Isabel and her husband, Peter Malkin – has continued to generously support the program their parents founded a half-century ago. During a recent interview, they reflected on the program’s first 50 years, shared memories of their parents, and spoke about their hopes for the future of the program.
Q: What would the Wiens think about the impact the Wien International Scholarship Program has had on both the scholarship recipients and the world since it was established?
Lester Morse: I think they would be absolutely thrilled. You can’t help but be impressed when you see some of the names and positions of responsibility that Wien Scholars now hold – whether it’s prime minister of Iceland or Turkish ambassador to the United States or a delegate to the United Nations – in part because of the education they received at Brandeis. They would be pleased that so many Wien Scholars have had such a significant impact upon their countries.
Isabel Malkin: I think they would be delighted that the program has survived and prospered. They would be very pleased with the way it has developed over the years.
Q: What motivated Mr. Wien to establish the program?
Lester Morse: He called this part of his program of “enlightened self-interest.” He derived great satisfaction from the program, and it meant a great deal to him.
Peter Malkin: Dad and Abe Sachar talked about the idea of establishing the program. I’m not sure if the idea was Abe’s or Dad’s, but Dad sold himself on the idea when he unsuccessfully proposed its funding to another Brandeis supporter.
Q: While the thrust of the Wien program was to further international understanding and provide foreign students an opportunity to study in the United States, wasn’t there also the expectation that it would enrich the intellectual and cultural life at Brandeis?
Enid Morse: Our father hoped that it would diversify the campus so that Brandeis would not be known as primarily a local Jewish university for Jewish students, but that it would be a truly global institution.
Q: During his life, Mr. Wien was a generous philanthropist who supported higher education, the arts, public television, athletics, and environmental causes. Was the Wien International Scholarship Program a particular favorite?
Peter Malkin: Of all the programs he created, this is the one to which he and mother devoted the largest endowment.
Lester Morse: I would guess that during his lifetime he derived more satisfaction from this particular program than all the others. The Wiens traveled the world together and they liked to meet with WISPs in the different countries they visited.
Q: It is known as the Wien International Scholarship Program, but is it correct to say that effectively it is the Wiens International Scholarship Program?
Enid Morse: The Wien program was wonderful because it was something that Mother was involved in from the beginning, and that made it special for both of them. One of the most meaningful parts of it was that this was something they did together.
Isabel Malkin: Mr. Wien was like a comet. You just sort of hung on and life was terribly exciting and he was terrifically innovative. Mrs. Wien was the one hanging on the hardest, and she was always there. I think she just loved doing all the things that he conceived during the course of their lives together.
Q: Did the Wiens pass on their affection for the program to you?
Enid Morse: Yes. We really were involved in going and observing and being part of it from the beginning. We all went up to Brandeis for the graduations. Major figures would come and speak at the brunch before graduation. Those were very exciting years, and we were there for it all.
Lester Morse: In the earliest days, we met some of the WISPs and saw how outstanding they really were. We have stayed in touch with them and witnessed the extent of their successes through the years.
Q: Has the program changed over the years?Enid Morse: Originally, to promote world understanding, the students were supposed to go back to their countries having gained an insight into our country. A number of them stay in this country now, but I think they’re wiser and still communicate what they have learned with the people in their countries.
Q: Can you give us an example of an important project a Wien Scholar is involved with now?
Peter Malkin: Iroka Udeinya is working in his native Nigeria to develop an effective treatment for HIV/AIDS. He has set up a lab to test whether the extract from a native Nigerian tree might be used in the fight against HIV/AIDS, just as quinine tree extract has been successful in treating malaria. He is an example of a person who has gone back home and is trying to do something meaningful in his own country.
Q: What are your hopes for the future of the Wien program?
Lester Morse: We certainly hope that it will continue to thrive and be as successful as it has been in the past and continue to have a positive impact on the lives of people around the world.
Isabel Malkin: And we know that Wien Scholars greatly enhance the education received by all students at Brandeis.
