The Walt Disney Company Anne M. Sweeney Scholarship Announced

Dean James Ryan announced today the creation of The Walt Disney Company Anne M. Sweeney Scholarship, in honor of Anne Sweeney, Ed.M.’80, that will support students pursuing their master’s degrees at HGSE.

“I am grateful to The Walt Disney Company for their generous support of our students,” Ryan said. “In doing so, they greatly honor Anne Sweeney, an extraordinarily successful HGSE graduate who has touched the lives of millions with her work and leadership at Disney.”

“My thanks to Bob Iger and The Walt Disney Company for their extraordinary generosity to HGSE and to me,” Sweeney said. “I am deeply honored. The scholarship will enable students to pursue careers that benefit all children."

The daughter of educators, Sweeney came to the Ed School where she studied human development, taking courses in children’s television with the late Professor Gerald Lesser, a key figure in the launch of Sesame Street. Her training under Lesser would come in handy as following graduation, when she went on to work at Nickelodeon in various roles, later helped establish the FX Network, and rise to the position of co-chair of Disney Media Networks and president of Disney-ABC Television Group.

During her 18-year career at Disney-ABC Television Group, she has been listed among “The Most Powerful Woman in Entertainment” by the Hollywood Reporter, the “50 Most Powerful Women in Business” by Fortune, and “The World’s 100 Most Powerful Women” by Forbes. In 2014, Sweeney stepped down from her position at Disney to pursue focus on the creative side of media, including television directing. She is also on the board of directors of Netflix and recently joined the Board of Trustees at the Mayo Clinic.