A class of Marriott School students has established the university’s first-ever endowed scholarship funded by a single class. With the help of matching contributions from the BYU Annual Fund campaign, the students contributed enough to form a scholarship endowment of $30,000.
Students in the management suite class, a combined religion and business management course, donated $5,000 to the university. Their donation was matched 5-to-1 through BYU’s Annual Fund student campaign to total $30,000. The endowed scholarship is simply called Section 5, Winter 2003 Perpetual Education Scholarship.
The idea for the scholarship developed during a class discussion centered on corporate and individual social responsibility. One student circulated a sheet of paper asking class members to indicate the amount of money they would be willing to donate toward a scholarship, said Bill Price, class instructor and director of the Marriott School Institute of Marketing.
After the class, Price was handed the paper. “Just out of curiosity, I totaled the amounts and was startled to see that the class was probably within striking distance of an endowment,” he said.
Karren Thomas, a class member, agreed to lead a student committee that got the idea approved and made the logistical arrangements. The students confidentially put their contributions in sealed envelopes.
Ninety percent of the 55 students in the class made a contribution to the endowment. One student donated a large cash birthday gift he received from his mother. He told Price that he felt better putting his money toward a scholarship than spending it all on himself, like he had with other birthday presents.
“It was especially gratifying for me to see these future business executives putting up their money to match the intent of their hearts,” says Price.
Natalie Sheffield, a student in the class, said, “We had learned the principles of charity and stewardship in our class. We recognized that as a team we could help with our fellow students’ needs.”
The first Section 5, Winter 2003 Perpetual Education Scholarship will be awarded in Fall 2004. The scholarship is earmarked for promising business students who need financial aid. Recipients and scholarship amounts will be determined by a Marriott School scholarship committee.
The Marriott School is located at Brigham Young University, the largest privately owned, church-sponsored university in the United States. The school has nationally recognized programs in accounting, business management, public management, information systems, organizational behavior and entrepreneurship. The school’s mission is to prepare men and women of faith, character and professional ability for positions of leadership throughout the world. Approximately 3,000 students are enrolled in the Marriott School’s graduate and undergraduate programs.
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Writer: Emily Smurthwaite