Campaign Donors Enrich Academic Experiences

By Ann Mangold and Pam Fronko

At the halfway point of its three-year quest, the WVU Foundation has already received gifts and pledges totaling $216 million towards the Building Greatness Campaign's $250 million goal.

Thus far during the campaign, 234 new scholarship funds have been created, including 32 for athletics. Students are benefiting from more than just scholarships. For example, through contributions to the Undergraduate Academic Enrichment Program in the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences, WVU students are participating in activities that enhance their academic experiences.

Last summer, students participated in the WVU in Vendée program, visiting France to enhance their language skills and develop a better understanding of French history and culture. During the five-week program students lived with host families, took classes, and visited historic sites and other points of interest in the Loire Valley and Paris.

Private support also made it possible for 15 environmental biology students, led by guides from the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, to take an all-day canoe trip on the Patuxent River in Maryland, where they observed estuary ecosystems and plants and animals living there.

Additionally, students were able to travel to Spain, Germany, Greece, and Cuba; conduct research in plasma physics; and take field trips to the Heinz Regional History Center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in Washington, D.C.

Meet the Leaders of the Building Greatness Campaign

By Ann Mangold

The WVU Foundation's $250 million Building Greatness Campaign is the most important private undertaking ever made on behalf of West Virginia University.

At the core of the effort is the 28-member National Campaign Committee, a dedicated group of individuals who hail from Connecticut, California, and points in-between. Members include CEOs and presidents of national and international corporations, leaders of venture capital firms and professional sports teams, educators, and philanthropists. They volunteer their time, energy, and financial support to the University they love and respect.

In this issue we continue spotlighting the members of this elite group.

John W. Crites is president of Allegheny Wood Products in Petersburg. He was the College of Business and Economics Entrepreneur of the Year in 1996. He earned a B.S. in forestry from WVU in 1963 and an M.S. in forest economics from the University of Montana. Crites is a member of the Board of Directors for the Appalachian Hardwood Exploit Council. He is a former trustee of the National Hardwood Lumber Association, former board member for South Branch Valley National Bank, and past director of the Appalachian Hardwood Lumber Manufacturers Association. Crites and his wife, Patricia, a 1964 WVU School of Medicine graduate, reside in Petersburg.

Sue Seibert Farnsworth is a partner with the law firm Seibert and Kasserman in Wheeling. She earned a B.A. in arts and sciences in 1962 and a J.D. in 1967, both from WVU. She was inducted into the WVU Order of Vandalia in 1999 and was selected Most Loyal Mountaineer in 1995. Farnsworth is a member and past chair of the WVU Foundation Board of Directors. She serves on the College of Law Visiting Committee. She also is a lifetime member of the WVU Alumni Association. Farnsworth is a former member of the West Virginia Board of Regents (1977-83), WVU Board of Advisors (1986-94), and the WVU Visiting Committee of the West Virginia and Regional History Collection (1984-86). Her husband and parents also are WVU graduates. Carlyle Farnsworth earned an A.B. in arts and sciences in 1942; George Seibert, an A.B. in 1937 and L.L.B. in 1939; and Janice Seibert, an A.B. in 1936 and J.D. in 1938.

Alfred F. Ware, a native of Greenbrier County, is the former chairman of Amhearst International Inc., which he founded in 1977. Ware earned a B.S. in physical education in 1950 and an M.S. in speech communication in 1952, both from WVU. He was inducted into the WVU Academy of Distinguished Alumni in 2000 and the School of Physical Education Hall of Fame in 1999. He is a member of the School of Physical Education Visiting Committee. Ware's wife, Dolores, also a WVU graduate, earned a B.S. in physical education in 1951. The Wares reside in Sarasota, Florida, and Franklin, Tennessee.

Chambers Family Establishes Electronic Business Program

By Tim Terman

The Chambers Family Charitable Trust has given the WVU College of Business and Economics $1 million to establish the Chambers Endowed Program for Electronic Business.

John and Elaine Chambers and John's parents, Jack and June Chambers, are adding this gift to their previous gift of $500,000 to strategically focus on a new program they have helped design to boost West Virginia's competitive position in information technology, electronic commerce, and entrepreneurship.

John Chambers and his parents are all WVU alumni. He serves as a member of the Building Greatness National Campaign Committee. This is one of the largest individual gifts in the college's history and a significant step toward the college's campaign goal of $20 million.

The program will develop ways to integrate information technology, e-commerce, and entrepreneurship into the WVU curriculum. Specifically, it is designed to recruit and retain strong faculty in information technology, electronic commerce, and entrepreneurship; establish an incubator program for students interested in creating high-technology start-up companies; provide direct student support (scholarships, laptop computers, and student internship support); and develop service and outreach programs to improve the competitive position of West Virginia businesses.

"I truly believe that the Internet and education are the two great equalizers in life," John Chambers said. "The Internet has the potential to change people's lives in ways we are just beginning to imagine, and I believe that technology and the Internet will help to level the playing field for students and faculty, both at WVU and worldwide. Elaine and I are pleased and honored to be able to support WVU's efforts in this exciting area of business education."

John Chambers earned a bachelor's degree in economics from WVU in 1971. He is president and CEO of Cisco Systems Inc., the worldwide leader in networking for the Internet.

Jack and June Chambers are both retired physicians living in Charleston. Jack graduated from WVU in 1943; June graduated in 1947. They have close ties to WVU and have provided strong financial support to the institution.

"The Chambers family has vision and commitment to the economic competitiveness of West Virginia," said B&E Dean Jay Coats, "and this is a highly effective way for them to make that vision a reality at a time when it's likely to have the highest possible impact."

Bloch Gift Enhances Creative Arts Center

By Charlene Lattea

Stuart and Stephanie Bloch of Wheeling have made a $400,000 gift to the College of Creative Arts to establish the Bloch Learning and Performance Center. The center will be located in the area formerly known as the Choral Recital Hall.

Among the many exciting renovations that are taking place at the Creative Arts Center, the improvements to the recital hall are integral to the comprehensive plan. The Bloch Learning and Performance Center will feature improved lighting and acoustics, aisle illumination, new seating and flooring, piano storage space, and a defined lobby area. Overall aesthetic changes and finish upgrades, state-of-the-art electronic media technology, and the installation of a large projection screen are also a part of the renovation plan.

As loyal patrons of the college for many years, Stuart and Stephanie Bloch, in addition to this most recent gift, have provided support for numerous student scholarships and computer technology upgrades. Stuart is a past chairman of the WVU Foundation Board of Directors. Stephanie has also been a dedicated member of the College of Creative Arts Board of Visitors and has given much of her time, creative energy,and expertise to the college.

Construction on the center began in May with a formal dedication planned for the fall.

Firm Establishes Law Professorship

By Pam Fronko

The members of the Bowles, Rice, McDavid, Graff & Love law firm have pledged $250,000 to establish an endowed professorship at the WVU College of Law.

According to Tom Graff, the firm's managing member and CEO, "Our firm has a long history with WVU and the College of Law. We have attorneys who have taught and continue to teach at the College of Law and several members serve the University on various committees. We share a close personal relationship with members of the faculty and staff, and we are especially proud of the leadership of President Hardesty, a former member of our firm.

"In making this contribution, our members reaffirm our commitment to WVU and the College of Law. We believe in giving back to this institution that has given so much to each of us. We are ensuring the future development and improvement of the college as well as our profession."

The firm previously established the Bowles, Rice, McDavid, Graff & Love Annual Law Scholarship Fund in memory of Paul Bowles. Its members have coached the college's Moot Court teams, and it has provided employment opportunities for WVU graduates.

Founded in 1920, Bowles, Rice, McDavid, Graff & Love is a regional firm with six offices and nearly 100 attorneys. It represents individuals, professionals, organizations, small businesses, and Fortune 500 companies from offices located in West Virginia, Kentucky, and the surrounding region.

Faculty Couple Gives to Mining Engineering Department

By Melissa Soave

Son Honors Parents with Gift to WVU

By Deborah Miller

Experiences in life teach us the great value that our parents add to our lives. Wendell Ware of Sherman Oaks, California, chose a special way to honor his parents at WVU.

He was born in Clarksburg in 1918. His parents were Webster County natives. The family's move to Florida in 1923 did not shield them from the very rough economic times of the Great Depression.

"We quickly became a family of the growing number of have-nots," Wendell recalls. "My schooling at St. Petersburg Junior College in 1937 became an economic burden and dropping out for a short-term gain was tempting. My mother had the family veto power and used it whenever necessary. I stayed in school."

That was a wise decision. After serving in the Army Air Corps and working for Remington-Rand for a number of years, Wendell was able to found his own company, Microfilm Business Systems, in 1951. The business was later sold to Arcata National Corp., a Fortune 500 company.

When he and his wife, Gloria, were beginning their estate planning a few years ago, he intended to establish endowed funds through his will, one of which would honor his parents at the educational institutions he graduated from in Florida and North Carolina.

As Wendell recalls, "Like my mother before her, Gloria has the family veto power. Gloria pointed out that my mother had no connection with North Carolina or its university, but that she and my father were natives of West Virginia and that my mother had been a teacher in Webster County. She told me, 'You should establish the Emma and Cyrus Ware Student Loan Fund at the WVU Foundation. They would have liked that.'"

As Wendell and Gloria can tell you, it's easy to include such a gift to benefit students, faculty, programs, technology needs, or research efforts at WVU simply by having your attorney include the wording "to the West Virginia University Foundation Inc." in the will. Additional information about the gift's use is appropriate to ensure that your wishes will be carried out. An endowed fund may be named for anyone the donor chooses to honor and will last in perpetuity.

"Any credit for this gift is due to Gloria alone. I am most pleased that she corrected my error before it was too late," says Wendell. In the future, WVU students will be most pleased, too.

Big Numbers
Two donations to WVU are among the 66 largest gifts in America for 2001, reports the Chronicle of Philanthropy.

Ranked 38th on the journal's annual list is an $18.4 million bequest from the estate of Gladys Gwendolyn Davis and her late sister, Vivian Davis Michael, primarily to support the College of Agriculture, Forestry, and Consumer Sciences.

Ranked 45th is a $15 million pledge from U.S. Senator Jay Rockefeller and his family to help establish the Blanchette Rockefeller Neurosciences Institute.

"This is a true testament of the devotion and commitment our supporters have in making sure the education students receive at WVU and our research are among the best in the country," said President Hardesty.

WVU supporters will have to be extra generous in 2002 to reach the top of the list. The largest gift to a university last year was a $300 million pledge to the California Institute of Technology.


Scholarship Information Available On-Line

The WVU Foundation has created a new web site that identifies 750 privately funded scholarships available to present and prospective WVU students and enables students to apply for the scholarships on-line. The site also recognizes donors and gives a history of each scholarship, including information on the donor or individual for whom the scholarship is named.

The site describes each scholarship and lists its eligibility requirements. So far, there have been more than 76,000 hits and 2,700 visitor sessions on the site.

The Foundation manages the scholarship funds and donors establish the eligibility requirements when the scholarship is created. In 2001, the Foundation disbursed $6.8 million in student scholarships.

The site, which is updated monthly by the Foundation, can be accessed through the West Virginia University Alumni Magazine home page, www.ia.wvu.edu/~magazine, or the Foundation home page, www.wvuf.org.

Betty Miller Scholarship Established

The Eberly College of Arts and Sciences has established a scholarship in honor of Betty Miller, associate professor of mathematics emerita. Miller is remembered fondly as a faithful instructor who spent 35 years in the classroom enthusiastically teaching calculus. Although she officially retired in 1992, she has since then accepted responsibilities in the Office of the Provost.

The Eberly College invites former students and colleagues of Miller to provide contributions to increase the scholarship endowment. Checks should be written to the WVU Foundation Inc., and on the memo line please add "B. Miller Scholarship 3S786."

Summer 2002 Contents

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