Carpenter Endowment funds scholarships for new Honors College
The Honors College at Lone Star College is continuing its momentum after a successful inaugural semester in fall 2014, and funds from the Richard G. Carpenter Endowment are playing a significant role.
When the Honors College was established, a Fellows program was rolled out "because quality Honors programs offer scholarships to students," says Dr. Katharine Caruso, Executive Director of the Honors College. "Funds from the Richard G. Carpenter Endowment have allowed us to implement a broader honors mission where we continue to serve students who are highly motivated and extremely bright, but who have financial pressures that become barriers to their educational success. It is a brilliant way to use funds strategically and to meet campus specific needs."
The Richard G. Carpenter Endowment was established in 2014 to honor the outgoing former Chancellor via funds raised through the Foundation. "This endowment provides resources for us to offer Honors programming to an extended audience, that goes above and beyond, by providing outside-the classroom cultural events, undergraduate research, conference presentations, peer-mentoring, community service, and leadership, allowing these students to have a transformative effect on campus culture," adds Caruso.
Fall 2015 will be the first year for students to benefit from the Richard G. Carpenter Endowment, as more than 60 students will receive over $37,000 in scholarships. Moving forward, scholarships will be awarded on a semester instead of a yearly basis, to ensure students' Honors eligibility. Each semester, effects on growth, recruitment and retention will be tracked and measured, to continually assess that the Honors program is serving students most effectively and stewarding donors' dollars responsibly.
"We are thrilled to have these funds so that we can broaden the point of entry for Honors students," says Dr. Caruso, "and thus reverse the stereotype of a nationally recognized Honors program being available to only a select few."