Securing students’ futures Simone Cahoj, a senior in business management and leadership studies, stays incredibly busy. She belongs to the co-ed business fraternity Delta Sigma Pi, won the Mark L. Morris, Jr. New Venture Development Competition and is preparing for an internship in Washington, D.C., this fall. She says it’s scholarships that allow her to get involved to this extent while still doing well in school. She receives support from the Sam R. and Kathleen
Holthus Willcoxon Scholarship and the Manaugh Memorial Scholarship. “It’s definitely made it easier to just focus on my studies,” Cahoj says. “I work part-time, but if I didn’t have these scholarships, I feel like my grades would be suffering.” Cahoj is just one of many KU students benefitting from scholarships. Private contributions to KU Endowment provide virtually all scholarships at KU. In both dollar amount and number of
students supported, KU Endowment is the largest source of funding that students don’t need to repay. — Jessica Sain-Baird
YOU CAN HELP
Support KU students in all they do — visit kuendowment.org/scholarships, or contact Dan Simon, dsimon@kuendowment.org or 785-832-7378.
brian goodman
KU Endowment Scholarships Summer 2009 – Spring 2010 Students receiving scholarships about 6,500 Total amount disbursed almost $25 million Simone Cahoj, Lawrence senior, is among thousands of KU students receiving support from scholarships managed by KU Endowment.
courtesy school of engineering
Potential discovered As a senior in high school, Taneasha Roberts, e’10, wasn’t sure she wanted to study engineering in college. That changed when she attended Project Discovery, a weeklong camp for high school girls that’s been held by the School of Engineering on the KU campus since 1998. She says the camp felt like “home away from home” and familiarized her with career possibilities in engineering as well as KU’s campus, faculty and scholarships. The camp’s goal is “no distractions, just discovery,” says Florence Boldridge, camp coordinator and director of diversity and women’s programs for the school. “The role of Project Discovery is to assist young women in thinking about
the various areas of engineering and what they want to pursue,” Boldridge says. About 40 girls participate each summer. Girls at the camp focus on a particular area of engineering, from aerospace to chemical to mechanical. They attend classes and labs, and present what they’ve learned to parents and friends at the end of the week. Linda Dotson Drake, e’65, g’68, has donated a total of $7,000 to Project Discovery since 2003. “I have a natural interest in encouraging young women to go into engineering,” Drake says. She says she focuses on Project Discovery because it allows young women to recognize their potential in engineering before starting college.
Of 16 graduating seniors who participated in Project Discovery in 2009, nine applied and were admitted to the school the same year. About 20 percent of the school’s undergraduate students are women. Donations to Project Discovery primarily keep the program affordable for girls, Boldridge says. She hopes to boost sponsorship for the camp in the future. “Obviously, it is working and needs to continue,” she says. — Jessica Sain-Baird
PROMOTE THE PROJECT Support Project Discovery by visiting kuendowment.org/project, or contact Amy Spikes, aspikes@kuendowment.org or 785-832-7467. KUENDOWMENT.ORG |
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