Building a legacy

By Madeline Swanson | Photos courtesy of the Brehms and Michigan Photography

Mariam Hamid (BS ’14, MD ’18) remembers the sunny spring day in 2010: Dearborn’s Fordson High School was abuzz as students waited to learn if they’d received the “golden ticket”—the Brehm Scholarship to attend the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor. “To date, the day I received the Brehm Scholarship was one of the happiest days of my life,” she said. “I became a part of the legacy of William K. and Delores S. Brehm and desired to have a life of service.”

Established in 2004 by William “Bill” (BS ’50, LLDHon ’13) and Delores “Dee” Brehm, the Brehm Scholars Program awards full tuition, four-year undergraduate scholarships to the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor for graduates of Fordson High School in Dearborn, Michigan. 

Hamid’s story is echoed by a growing network of Brehm Scholars who, over the past 20 years, have carried with them not just a prestigious scholarship, but a calling to reach higher, to give back, and to elevate their communities. What started with a single scholarship has now opened the doors for more than 80 promising undergraduates—each with a story that began in the heart of Dearborn and continues on in hospitals, classrooms, laboratories, and boardrooms across Michigan and beyond. She and other students shared their stories with U‑M’s Office of University Development earlier this year.

A vision rooted in community

The Brehm Scholarship was born of Bill Brehm’s vision and his own journey from Fordson High School to U‑M, and ultimately to the highest echelons of business and philanthropy. 

While at Michigan, Bill received a U‑M Regents’ Alumni Scholarship that covered his undergraduate tuition. Grateful for the support he received and proud of the role that his Fordson and U‑M education played in his career, Bill established not only the Brehm Scholars Program for undergraduates, but also the Brehm Medical School Scholarships for those Brehm Scholars who go on to study at the U‑M Medical School. At Michigan, the Brehms have supported a variety of causes, including scholarships and professorships at the Medical School and the Brehm Center for Diabetes Research,the Brehm Endowed Fellowship in Choral Conducting, and various prizes in conducting and composition at the School of Music, Theatre & Dance. Community members mourned Bill Brehm’s death this past July.

Hassan Nasser (AB ’09, MD ’15) said the Brehms’ support has been transformative not only for himself, but for the entire Dearborn community. 

“I think the true impact of the scholarship on the Dearborn and Fordson communities is impossible to overstate,” Nasser said. “It revolutionized the way Dearborn youth thought about their own personal and academic potential. …It had a truly profound economic, psychological, and spiritual impact.”

A ripple effect for generations

From the day first-year students walk through Fordson’s doors, the Brehm Scholarship offers access and opportunity, especially for students who may be the first in their families to attend college. Students say it inspires them to work hard, believe in their dreams, and envision futures beyond what they once thought possible.

As David Haidar (BS ’13, MD ’17), who serves as a clinical professor at U‑M’s Department of Emergency Medicine, shares, “It completely shifted our culture, exposing our community to a world outside of Dearborn.”

 Bill and Dee Brehm with a group of Brehm Scholars.

 
For many Brehm Scholars, the scholarship is not just financial support; it’s an invitation to imagine new possibilities and a pathway to achieve them. These students often carry what they’ve learned back to their families and neighborhoods, inspiring the next generation to dream even bigger.

Many Brehm Scholars speak not only of the financial support, but of the genuine care and interest of the Brehm family. Linda Saab (BS ’08, MD ’13), the inaugural scholar and now chief of psychiatry at Sinai-Grace Hospital, remembers the Brehms as “mentors, advisors, and friends.”

The numbers tell part of the story: over $4 million awarded, hundreds of alumni, and dozens now pursuing advanced degrees in medicine, law, and research. There’s a ripple effect particularly throughout the Dearborn community, with former scholars serving as chief psychiatrists, faculty members, ophthalmologists, surgeons, research scientists, clinical pharmacists, educators, lawyers, and nonprofit leaders paying forward the education they received at U‑M by returning to their roots as alumni.

Since 2004

• 82 undergraduate scholars
• 36 U‑M Medical School scholars
• $4,008,185.42 undergraduate scholarship support awarded

The legacy lives on

Year after year, new recipients are welcomed into the fold. Some, like Leila Kassam (LSA class of 2026), now lead the Brehm Society or write for The Michigan Daily; others, like Yumna Dagher (AB ’25) and Hadi Fayad (BS ’25, Medical School class of 2029), manage research projects or intern with local nonprofits. 

The Brehm legacy is visible in every corner of Southeast Michigan. The impact of this program is more than measurable outcomes or dollar figures—it’s the steady cultivation of leadership, service, and community spirit in each scholar. As more Fordson students receive their “golden ticket,” the legacy of the Brehms, of believing in the potential of every young student, lives on, one scholar at a time.