K-State alumni carry on family tradition of supporting students with scholarships
A fateful trip to the financial aid office at Kansas State University led Terri Harold Hopkins ’84 to a fruitful surprise.
“At the time, they handed you a list of questions to see what you might qualify for,” Terri said. “One of the questions was, ‘Are you a descendant of William and Melissa Harold?’ I called my dad, and he said they were my great-grandparents.”
As a descendant of William and Melissa Harold, she was eligible for their scholarship. That, combined with the Seaton scholarship she received, helped fund the final three years of her out-of-state tuition.
The William and Melissa Harold Memorial Scholarship was created in 1977 by their daughter (and Terri’s great aunt), Florence (Harold) Marcoux ’30, ’36, who had earned her bachelor’s degree in home economics education and master’s in dietetics and institutional management from K-State.
Family traditions
Terri followed in her father’s footsteps and came to K-State to earn her degree in chemical engineering in 1984. Her husband, Carl Hopkins, also came to K-State the same years, majoring in chemical engineering and earning his degree in 1984.
“I married my lab partner!” exclaimed Carl.
Carl’s brother and sister also went to K-State, as did Terriand Carl’s daughters and their husbands.
“We’ve created a legacy of people going to K-State,” Terri said.
But that’s not the only legacy they’ve created. Terri and Carl also invested in students with a scholarship, much like Terri’s ancestors.
“The scholarships I had as a student helped alleviate financial insecurity for me,” Terri said. “Creating a scholarship was a combination of wanting to give back to the university and to helping other students who have financial need. The Vanier match made creating a scholarship financially attractive.”
Maxing the match
The Mary Vanier Family Match is one of several matching funds in the K-State Family Scholarship program. With a minimum gift of $32,000, the match fund adds another $32,000, making a new scholarship fund endowed with $64,000. Two thousand dollars is immediately available to reward to a student, and the rest goes into the endowment to gain interest. The donor can make a lump sum payment or pledge the payment over five years.
Terri and Carl utilized the match to create the Harold Hopkins Family Scholarship in honor of Terri’s father, Gale Harold ‘58, and it will support students in the Carl R. Ice College of Engineering.
“The family match program really helps folks like us who want to give back be able to give in a manner that makes an impact,” Carl said. “I recommend alumni make giving to K-State part of their financial plan. Being able to pledge the scholarship money over five years makes creating a scholarship through the K-State Family Scholarship program a lot easier.”
Having received scholarships herself, Terri knows how meaningful scholarships can be.
“I hope our scholarship helps students have a better college experience by having some financial support they wouldn’t otherwise get,” she said. “I feel very blessed to be where I am in life, and I think it’s important to bless other people.”
Your turn
Learn how you can create a scholarship through the K-State Family Scholarship program.
