As the school year comes to a close and the University of Georgia produces another group of outstanding graduates, it’s time to say “thanks” to all of the administrators, professors and staff whose dedication and skill have made a difference in the lives of so many.  In keeping with that theme, the banner of this newsletter shows the UGA Memorial Garden which was dedicated in 2005 to honor students, faculty, staff and alumni of the university who paid the ultimate price in defense of our great nation.  The effort to create the garden was made possible by the generosity of donors to the university and was spearheaded by Dr. Loch Johnson, a Regents Professor and Josiah Meigs Distinguished Teaching Professor.

To the students who are earning degrees and moving on to additional studies and/or embarking on careers, congratulations on your accomplishments and best wishes in your future endeavors.  To our donors, my sincerest thanks for all that you do to help make such success possible!

Foundation Hosts Dinner Honoring Holders of Chairs and Professorships

Spring got off to a splendid start with a wonderful dinner celebration honoring many of the outstanding individuals that hold chairs and professorships funded by the University of Georgia Foundation, of which there are 139 at present.  The dinner was a tribute to some of the nation’s very best academic leaders and was an event that grew from the very roots of a foundation whose sole mission in 1937 was to build and administer an endowment fund to assure the university could attract and retain the very best instructors possible.  I believe the founders would be pleased with the foundation’s success in helping the university consistently achieve that objective.

Thanks to our donors who have so generously funded the chairs and professorships held by these honorees.

UGA Alumni Association President Rotating Off of Foundation Board of Trustees
I wanted to take a moment to say thanks to the University of Georgia Alumni Association for all of the great work they do.  The Alumni Association does so much through a long list of activities and events that bond
us together as fellow graduates and it’s something they’ve been doing quite well since 1834!

For the last couple of years we have been privileged to have Alumni Association President Swann Seiler as an ex-officio member of our board.  She has been an active and valued trustee and an outstanding leader of the association.  With her term as alumni president coming to an end, she will be rotating off the University of Georgia Foundation Board of Trustees in June.  Thanks Swann for your dedication to the foundation and to the university, we sincerely appreciate your efforts and wish you well in your future endeavors!

Outstanding News from the Foundation Fellows Program
There’s much in way of exciting news involving University of Georgia Foundation scholarship recipients to pass along this month including news of three mid-term Foundation Fellowship winners and prestigious national scholarship honors accorded to two of our fellows.

Sana Hashmi from Martinez, GA who is triple majoring in biology,religion and microbiology; Clare Hatfield, a double major in international affairs and romance languages from Alpharetta, GA; and Nithya Natrajan, a double major in genetics and microbiology from Evans, GA have earned the mid-term awards.

“I am very pleased to welcome these outstanding students to the Foundation Fellowship,” said David Williams, director of the Honors Program. “They have remarkable academic records and potential.  We are confident that they will make great contributions to the fellowship, the campus and the community.”

Students enrolled in the third semester of the Honors Program with a minimum cumulative 3.70 GPA and two years of study remaining are eligible for mid-term Foundation Fellowships. The awards provide funding for the last two years of academic study, including the full estimated cost of attendance, as well as study abroad, undergraduate research and conference grants, and a variety of other educational enrichment opportunities.

In addition to the Foundation Fellowship, Nithya Natrajan has been accorded a prestigious Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship for the 2007-2008 academic year.  Jessica Bryant a National Merit Scholar, also from Evans, earned a Goldwater Scholarship as well.  Administered by the Excellence in Education Foundation, the awards are made to a very select group of approximately 300 of the nation’s top students in mathematics, science and engineering each year.

Katrin Usifo, a senior microbiology major and Foundation Fellow from Savannah, is one of 14 students selected nationally for the 2007 Merage American Dream Fellowship. The two-year, scholarship recognizes academically superior immigrant students and is designed to help these outstanding young people “realize the American dream.”  Born in the Ukraine, Katrin also lived in Germany and Nigeria before coming to the U.S. in 1989.

Annual Board of Trustees Meeting is Coming up in June
We hope to see all of our board members at the foundation’s annual meeting June 21 and 22 on Sea Island.  We have very full agendas to work through in each of the respective committee meetings and in the full board session.   Trustees needing additional information with regard to the board meeting, please contact Maggie McAllister at (706) 542-8385 or mmcallis@uga.edu. We look forward to seeing you there!

In this newsletter we’ve seen just a few examples of the outstanding achievements from the University of Georgia family, and May is always a time to celebrate academic accomplishments.  It is also a time of reflection as we remember the brave men and women with ties to the university who have given their lives in defense of our nation. Their sacrifices will never be forgotten.

Read Morton