Funding the Dream
Alumni Scholarships Give Opportunities to Some of Oregon’s Best Students

For most students, getting accepted to the college of their choice is the beginning of a lifelong journey of higher education and discovery. But for some, the price of that journey is too expensive even to make the first destination. That’s why the College of Arts & Sciences (CAS) is taking steps to ensure that academically gifted students with financial need will have the opportunity to attend the University of Oregon through its recent creation of special CAS Alumni Scholarships.

The scholarships are aimed at bright, need-based Oregon residents who otherwise would most likely either not attend a university or attend a local junior college, says Joe Stone, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. “Our hope is that this award, typically in combination with the Dean’s Scholarship and other forms of aid, will make it possible for bright Oregon residents with financial need to attend the UO without incurring undue levels of student debt,” he says.

Scholarship recipients are selected on the basis of their academic achievements and potential benefit from the additional scholarship money. Candidates also must be Oregon residents who have declared a major within the College of Arts & Sciences. Recipients are eligible to receive the $1,000 scholarship each year for up to four years of undergraduate study as long as their primary major is in CAS, they take a minimum of 12 credits in CAS courses each term, and they maintain a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.0.

Already more than sixty students from this year’s incoming class were offered CAS Alumni Scholarships. For many freshmen, such as Allison Lenhard, a recent graduate of Junction City High School, the scholarship played an important role in their decisions to come to the University of Oregon. “As most high school seniors, I was scrambling to find ways to fund my education. This scholarship was an encouragement that the University of Oregon was a correct decision,” Lenhard says.

Freshman Jennifer L. Eldredge, who recently graduated from Grant High School in Portland, says in addition to helping her financially, the scholarship also gives her great pride. Eldredge says she decided to attend the UO because she was impressed with its nationally recognized accomplishments and its “home state comfort.” She says, “I feel like I will have many opportunities at the UO and also be able to afford my education.”

The CAS Scholarships are made possible through alumni contributions. One of the first gifts received for the scholarship fund was from Keith and Judy Swayne. Keith Swayne, who is a member of the CAS Advisory Council, says that his and Judy’s gift was a way for them to give back to the university. “Judy and I each had the good fortune of having had the opportunity to attend college and become the first in our families to do so. We recognize how valuable that experience was in setting the foundation for our lives. This scholarship program represents a wonderful opportunity for us to give back to the university in a most meaningful way to assist deserving youth in building a foundation for their futures.”

Swayne says he hopes that their gift will be a catalyst for others to give to this scholarship program so that it might be expanded and made a permanent resource for future students.

For freshman Ben Ingram, a recent graduate of David Douglas High School in Portland, gifts such as the Swayne’s already are helping him work toward his future goals. He says, “My career goals have been long standing, and always the UO has been a key part of those goals. My grandparents are UO alumni and after my first campus visit I knew that there was no other place I would rather go.” He says the scholarship helped tremendously “on making my UO dreams a reality.”

For more information about contributing to the CAS Alumni Scholarship fund, call the CAS development office at (541) 346-3950.