
4 minute read
Sharing The Legacy
Minute with a Muskingum Society Member:
Gene Folden ’81
Gene Folden ’81 and his partner Robert Burns, M.D.
“I loved every minute of my Muskingum experience,”
Gene Folden ’81 recalls. “Muskingum was a place where you
were known, included, and celebrated. My professors took the time to know me, and they saw things in me that perhaps I didn’t see in myself.”
“I had wonderful professors – Drs. Elkins, Fisk, Stultz, Barrett, Porter, McClelland, to name just a few. They rapidly became mentors and friends. They provided their students with wonderful opportunities to be included and involved in campus community life, inviting us to many gatherings at their homes and introducing us to visiting speakers and other interesting people.”
Gene holds his Muskingum Bachelor of Arts degree in History, Philosophy, and Religion. He attended the Methodist Theological School in Ohio and became an ordained Methodist minister, and then earned his Master of Arts degree in Gerontology at Miami University (Oxford, Ohio) and his Doctor of Philosophy degree in Gerontology at The Ohio State University.
Since 1990, Gene has served as Clinical Associate Professor in Human Development and Family Science at The Ohio State University, where he concentrates his efforts on teaching, advising, and mentoring students.
In 2021, he received the Distinguished Teaching Award, the top teaching honor presented by The Ohio State University Alumni Association. “He is a master of the craft of teaching and cares deeply for the best interest of his students,” one of his former students wrote in nominating him for the award. He has also twice received the College of Education and Human Ecology’s Excellence in Teaching Award and has served as his department’s Associate Chair for Curriculum.
“I owe a huge debt of gratitude to my mentor and friend, former Muskingum professor Joe Elkins,” Gene reflects. “He significantly shaped the kind of educator and advisor that I have become. He taught me to listen more and lecture less, to teach by example and not so much by words, to learn the names of students because it matters that you are known, to encourage spontaneity and humor in myself and my students, and to care about, respect, and celebrate differences. I try to make a positive difference in my students’ lives just as he made in mine. He was the best of professors, the best of friends, and the best of listeners.”
“The connection I had with Dr. Elkins and my other professors is why I became a Muskingum Society member,”
Gene explains. “It’s very important to me to give back
to Muskingum and to support scholarships for current students.”
“I am so committed to supporting Muskingum that my partner Dr. Bob Burns and I have already provided for the University in our estate. I hope that other alumni will join me in making planned gifts and ensuring that the University and its students will benefit well into the future.”
Annual Giving 2022-2023

Go All In For Muskingum
Webster’s defines “ALL IN” as being fully committed.
• Current Muskies are ALL IN inside the classroom and in their organizations. • Student-Athletes are ALL IN on the field, on the court, on the track, and on the mat.
• Faculty and Staff are ALL IN for student success and a thriving
University. • Alumni are ALL IN representing the
Long Magenta Line.
You can be ALL IN with your financial support:
• Make a gift of any amount to the Muskingum Fund, which supports students and their educational needs, including financial aid and scholarships.
• If you graduated in the past 10 years, join the Magnus Network with an annual gift of $250 or more (Classes of 2018-2022) or $500 or more (Classes of 2013-2017). Gifts to the Muskingum Fund, to Athletics, and to
Reunion Giving all count toward your total. • Join the Muskingum Society with an annual gift of $1,000 or more. • If your company offers a matching gift program, increase the impact of your gift. Your employer’s match counts toward your membership in the
Muskingum Society or the Magnus Network. • Gifts can be made in monthly installments or as a single contribution.
Magnus Network and Muskingum Society members receive special invitations to University events, recognition on the Donor Wall in Caldwell Hall and in the IMPACT Annual Report, and University-branded swag (Magnus Network members) or a lapel pin (new Muskingum Society members). Visit www.muskingum.edu/giving to make a gift online. For more information, contact Institutional Advancement at advancement@muskingum.edu or 740-826-8130. Thank You for your support!
Planned Giving –
Impact the Muskingum of Tomorrow
Powerful planned giving strategies include:
• An outright gift of appreciated assets such as securities or real estate.

• A life insurance gift. • A charitable life income plan such as a charitable gift annuity or a charitable remainder trust. • A charitable life estate.

• A qualified charitable distribution from an IRA for individuals over 70 1/2 years of age. For further information, contact Paul McClelland, Vice President for Institutional Advancement, at 740-826-8648 or paulm@muskingum.edu.
The Henry D. Bullock Health and Wellness Complex
The Marquis Plaza at the west entrance honors the memory of the 1925 McConagha Stadium. The plaza features a pair of concrete pillars from the original entrance, which for decades framed the Fighting Muskies as the team ran onto the field. Read more about the history of Muskingum’s first stadium at www.muskingum.edu/bhwc/marquis-plaza.

