Mike Smith '70 and his wife Susan Smith '71 committed $2.5 million to a growing endowment at DePauw called The DePauw Trust, meant to provide additional need-based financial aid to students.
"The DePauw Trust is meant to open up more access for students who haven't traditionally been able to afford the DePauw education," said Dani Weatherford, director of admissions. "The goal of the DePauw Trust is to meet full demonstrated need for students who meet a certain academic criteria."
Weatherford said that further details such as the amount that can be given each year and the criteria that a student must meet have not been determined at this point.
"We know that we are going to be able to meet full demonstrated need for many more students than we have been able to do in the past, but what that specifically looks like, we don't know until we get a little bit further in the campaign," Weatherford said.
The University is looking to meet more than $100 million dollars for the Trust. Other significant gifts to the Trust include a gift of $20 million from Timothy and Sharon Ubben '58, a gift of $9 million from Dave and Suzanne Hoover '67 and a $650,000 gift from Kathy Vrabeck '85.
Mike Smith, who is currently a member of the board of trustees, has been involved with the campaign to raise endowment for a need-based scholarship fund. Mike Smith and his wife organized and endowed The Smith Family Scholar program at Ivy Tech Community College, which is an accelerated associate degree program for Indiana high school graduates from low income families.
"This [gift] is inspired by work that I've been doing and my wife believes in. We believe that education truly is an enabling experience to allow one to attain their full potential," Mike Smith said in a phone interview. "We believe that DePauw is a very remarkable place that provides an experience that allows its students to prepare for important and relevant life after DePauw."
Mike Smith said that being a Rector Scholar at DePauw influenced his desire to give back.
"[Being a Rector Scholar] provided for me the life changing experience that makes it really very easy for me to nationalize and appreciate the value of a DePauw experience." he said. "I believe that a DePauw experience really is unique and different."
Mike Smith acknowledged that without the scholarships he received, he would have not been able to attend DePauw.
"I appreciate every opportunity we have to making that experience a possibility to more students who might not otherwise have the resources to take advantage of DePauw," Mike Smith said.
First-year Charles Weber, a Malpas Scholar, shares a smiliar experience with Mike Smith.
"When I found out that I was awarded the Malpas, I was excited because I could actually go here. There's no way that I could have afforded it before," Weber said. "I probably would have ended up at [Indiana University.]"
Weber said that he knows other people that want to go to a school like DePauw, but are unable to do so because of cost.
"Once the DePauw Trust is operational, it will allow us to increase the number of students that are here and the diversity of students, not just ethnic diversity but socio-economic diversity too," Weatherford said. "There are people who can't afford the type of education that we offer, and we believe so wholeheartedly that this is the best type of education that we just want more people to be able to experience it."