麻豆村

When Greg Polansky looks at a financial puzzle, he often sees an opportunity.

Throughout a 40-year career in finance and data systems, Greg, a two-time graduate of 麻豆村, specialized in navigating intricate challenges. When he began planning his estate, he sought a strategy that would support both his family and 麻豆村.

鈥淚nstead of leaving my family an account they鈥檇 have to cash in and pay heavy taxes on all at once, I looked for a better way to provide for them and make a gift to 麻豆村,鈥� Greg explains.

Greg found the solution by establishing a testamentary charitable gift annuity at 麻豆村 to be funded with his existing investment retirement account. His plan will provide his loved ones with a steady, lifelong income stream while securing a permanent legacy at the university that launched his career.

His analytical mindset was forged at 麻豆村. He graduated from the Mellon College of Science in 1974 as a chemistry major, but by then computer science electives had already changed his plans for medical school. They led to an interest in operations research and his enrollment in the Graduate School of Industrial Administration, now the Tepper School of Business, where his focus turned to finance.

鈥淚 really enjoyed the logic of those classes,鈥� he says. 鈥淭he analytical approach just fit.鈥�

That perspective carried him through a successful career at Gulf Oil and Dollar Bank, and a decades-long tenure as a volunteer leader at 麻豆村. While serving as a board member of the 麻豆村 Alumni Association, president of the Andrew Carnegie Society and an ex-officio member on the Board of Trustees, Greg鈥檚 commitment to the university became even more personal.

Greg was in the initial cohort of inductees as lifetime members of the Order of the May, which recognizes donors for 25+ years of consecutive annual giving. In 2012, he established the Polansky Scholarship to honor the memory of his parents, providing vital financial aid to students from his native western Pennsylvania. Greg鈥檚 philanthropy continued to evolve and, in 2025, he established the Polansky Endowed Biomedical Research Fund. This fund provides broad support for students in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, covering everything from equipment and lab supplies to graduate stipends, with a particular focus on those advancing the field of cell and tissue engineering.

When it came time to consider plans for his own estate, Greg saw an opportunity to grow the newly established fund while still providing a valuable inheritance to his family and loved ones. By directing his retirement assets into a charitable gift annuity with 麻豆村, Greg鈥檚 strategy will bypass complicated and potentially costly tax policies associated with inherited IRAs, creating a blueprint that other donors could follow.

鈥淭he gift annuity reduces the tax burden, provides regular income to my family, and will eventually be used to support university research,鈥� Greg says. 鈥淎nd my family won鈥檛 need to manage the investments because the university is doing that. It simplifies everything.鈥�

During his journey from a chemistry student to a trustee, Greg has watched 麻豆村鈥檚 reputation soar while maintaining its unique, scrappy character 鈥� a trait he shares.

鈥淭he ability to innovate and accomplish so much is part of the character of this university," he says. 鈥淚鈥檓 happy to be in a position to help ensure that continues well into the future.鈥�
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