Indiana University-Purdue University Columbus (IUPUC) today announced two significant gifts from community leaders Gregg and Judy Summerville to support the campus’ $4 million capital campaign, now entering its final three years.
Among the campus campaign priorities are scholarship support for students, programs that cultivate a stronger workforce, endowed faculty positions that attract and retain top educators, and updated facilities to support innovative approaches to learning.
Private philanthropy is essential to sustaining the IUPUC programs and initiatives that make these priorities a reality for students, faculty, and staff.
With their recent support, the Summervilles have established both the Summerville Family Scholarship for undergraduate students and the Summerville IUPUC Program Support Fund. The Program Support Fund will be used to maintain priority programming set by IUPUC Vice Chancellor and Dean, Dr. Reinhold Hill.
“This generous donation by the Summerville’s will allow us to explore innovative programs at IUPUC and provides us flexibility in responding to emerging fields and disciplines,” IUPUC Vice Chancellor and Dean Reinhold Hill said.
And as part of the For All: The Indiana University Bicentennial Campaign, Indiana University will match the income portion of the endowed Summerville Family Scholarship gift, making the impact even greater.
Gregg Summerville shares,
When Judy and I made our gift, we wanted to help both students and the community. While IUPUC is a wonderful value in terms of an education, college is nonetheless an expensive proposition for most families. We really wanted to focus on first generation and special financial needs situations. Additionally, the Campaign's matching feature made the gift by us even more attractive.
We also feel that a vibrant college campus is important to Columbus. We in Columbus are proud when our town appears on the list of livability, affordability, etc. Judy and I began to notice that many other cities on those lists had vibrant college campuses. So the second part of our gift is designed to help enhance programs to attract more students from Bartholomew County and surrounding communities. When you consider that IUPUC is at the top of the list as a college choice for Bartholomew County seniors, we hope t helps cement that position for some time to come.
In addition to their roles as members of the IUPUC Board of Advisors, Gregg Summerville, President of Tecumseh Capital Partners, and Rick Johnson, President of Johnson Ventures, are serving as IUPUC co-chairs of the university-wide campaign.
“Gregg and Judy have a long history of personal leadership and generous financial support in the Columbus community broadly and with education initiatives specifically’” IUPUC Board of Advisors member Rick Johnson said. “This support of IUPUC and its future students is one more remarkable example of the difference that they continue to make in moving our Columbus community forward.”
In addition to the volunteer hours Gregg devotes to the Columbus campus, he is also a member of the Indiana University Foundation Board of Directors. His wife, Judy, is a founding member of the Indiana University Women’s Philanthropy Leadership Council, and they both serve on the Indiana University Eskenazi Museum of Art National Advisory Board.
“Gregg and Judy [Summerville] are remarkable supporters of IUPUC, and work tirelessly to help the city of Columbus thrive through their thoughtful giving, and community engagement,” IU Foundation President Dan Smith said. “Their years of service to the IUPUC campus, the IU Foundation, and numerous related programs is an inspiration to all.”
As the only four-year public university in south-central Indiana, IUPUC meets the needs of many local employers and communities. The South-Central Indiana region looks to IUPUC for education and support for the area’s primary economic drivers: healthcare and advanced manufacturing.
The gifts from the Summerville family position IUPUC well heading into the final three years of its capital campaign. The campaign will officially end December 31, 2019, as Indiana University celebrates its bicentennial in 2020.
As a part of For All: The Indiana University Bicentennial Campaign, contributions towards IUPUC’s campaign will impact the region – and the greater good of Indiana.
About For All: The Indiana University Bicentennial Campaign
For All: The Indiana University Bicentennial Campaign is taking place on all IU-administered campuses including IU Bloomington, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, IU East, IU Kokomo, IU Northwest, IU South Bend, and IU Southeast. The campaign will conclude in December 2019 to coincide with IU’s bicentennial year celebration in 2020. To learn more about the campaign, its impact, and how to participate, visit forall.iu.edu.