Drs. Norton establish a scholarship to promote excellence in veterinary medicine at K-State.
As rural veterinarians who care for large and small animals, Drs. Judy and Randy Norton are busy. Add the time these Kansas State University graduates devote to their interests and their professional associations, the Nortons define “busy.” Between them, Judy and Randy continue working as veterinarians in the mixed-animal, eight-county veterinary practice they recently sold in western Kansas, maintain the family farming operation, professionally raise and train puppies as assistance dogs, and serve on the Kansas Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program Working Group.
The Nortons point to their veterinary careers as the catalyst of the full and interesting lifestyle they enjoy. Recently, Judy and Randy established a scholarship to benefit the College of Veterinary Medicine so that others will have a chance to obtain a K-State veterinary medicine education and their own interesting veterinary career.
How did they do it? The Nortons capitalized on the Mary Vanier Family Scholarship match fund to help students and double their donation dollars.
“We hope our gift allows quality students to obtain an excellent education with lower debt so they might achieve financial independence earlier in their professional career,” Randy said.
New gifts of $30,000 are matched with $30,000 from the seed fund, for a total gift of $60,000. $10,000 goes into an expendable fund, making $2,000 scholarships available to be awarded to students immediately. The remaining $50,000 goes into the endowment, ensuring future generations of Wildcats will receive scholarships as well.
“We believe it is our responsibility to give back to the profession that allowed us to have successful careers and achieve personal and professional satisfaction — an investment in our profession,” Judy said.
Learn more about how you can take advantage of matching opportunities through the K-State Family Scholarship Program at ksufoundation.org/family, or contact John Morris, senior vice president of development, via email or 785-775-2007.
This gift supports Innovation and Inspiration: The Campaign for Kansas State University to raise $1.4 billion to propel Kansas State University toward becoming a top 50 public research university by 2025.
