Donations Total Nearly $3M For Valpo
(Image courtesy of Valparaiso University)
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowValparaiso University has received two gifts totaling nearly $3 million. A $1.8 million contribution from a longtime assistant professor of library services will create a new scholarship fund and $1.1 million from an alumnus will support the university’s unrestricted endowment fund.
The Umbach Family Endowed Scholarship Fund is named in honor of 1959 graduate Stephanie Umbach, who served for almost 50 years on the Valpo library staff before retiring in 2009. Her father Herbert was on the Valparaiso faculty for over 40 years and was also a Lutheran pastor.
President Mark Heckler says "the Umbach family dedicated their professional careers to Valparaiso University, and their endowed scholarship fund will continue to impact students in perpetuity. For more than 75 years – beginning in 1931 when Herbert joined the faculty, through 2009 when Stephanie retired – an Umbach family member served as Valpo faculty. Their service and gift truly represent the principles of Forever Valpo, and the entire University community is grateful."
The gift from Les Chapman, who graduated in 1977, will allow university leadership to spend the funds as they see fit. Valpo describes its unrestricted endowment fund as an option to "respond to unforeseen challenges, fund a program or scholarship that may not otherwise receive support or seize an opportunity that requires immediate funding not available in the operating budget."
Chapman says his gift will help the school "continue to provide the same personal interaction with professors that I had as a Valpo student. The ability to stop by a professor’s office and just chat is a valuable part of the education process that is missing at many universities." Chapman currently serves as president and senior technical manager of OCS Environmental Inc. in Porter.
The gifts will count toward the Forever Valpo: The Campaign for Our Future effort, which is looking to raise $250 million. The campaign went public last month and has attracted more than $135 million so far.