Endowed Scholarships Open the Door to

which ultimately led to my first job,” Al Trezza says.

Jared McHale ’20, who benefited from the Trezzas’ scholarship, said the honor of receiving the award provided a boost of confidence as he navigated the rigor of the mathematics major.

“When you're in the middle of it, sometimes it seems like it's not going quite the way you expected. And then to have something like the scholarship show that you’re making progress — it felt good,” says McHale, who double minored in psychology and education studies.

Following graduation, McHale began a position as an AmeriCorps VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America) member with the Crawford Central School District in his hometown of Meadville. His work focuses on initiatives that encourage families to become more involved in school programming. He also works with the Crawford County Mental Health Awareness Program.

Mary “Missy” Feeley ’78, chair of the College’s Board of Trustees, says that she hopes her gifts help Allegheny continue to educate “thoughtful students who go out into the world to make society better.”

Like the Trezzas, Feeley and her husband, Clive Gregson, honored a faculty mentor, Geology Professor 31

I come from a family that hasn't seen a single member gain a four-year degree, ever. I'll be the first one.

Kasey Cordes ’21

I know that I will remember this experience and want to help future Allegheny students long after I have graduated, just like you helped me.

Bethany Allen ’22

in a thank-you letter for the Paul C. Morrison ’61 and Barbara T. Morrison ’63 Scholarship

Sam Harrison ’63, by supporting an endowed scholarship that is awarded annually. Through a bequest commitment, they also will endow a professorship that honors Harrison.

Feeley says Harrison helped to spark her interest — and ultimately her career — in the geosciences. “He was the one who taught me to look around and make observations of the physical world and then be able to think about how it formed,” she says. “I wanted to give back and allow students to have the same kind of experiences working with Allegheny faculty that I had. The faculty are such an incredible asset for the College.” A spirit of paying it forward also helped to inspire Andrea Ammann Parker ’67 to make a bequest commitment toward a scholarship. Parker says that financial aid made it possible for her late husband, Robert Parker '64 — who served in the U.S. Air Force, was a career scientist with the U.S. Navy, and was a member of the College's Alumni Council — along with many of his family members, to attend Allegheny.

Parker, who majored in history, looks back with gratitude on her Allegheny education. She says it helped to prepare her for a wide-ranging career that included selling real estate and directing a childcare center. “You learn how to

When you're in the middle of it, sometimes it seems like it's not going quite the way you expected. And then to have something like the scholarship show that you’re making progress — it felt good.

Jared McHale ’20

learn at Allegheny,” she says. “You have a major and you have a direction, but you have experiences that lead you to be able to go into other areas and succeed.”

Parker gifted her house, which had appreciated considerably in value, to establish a charitable remainder trust, with the College serving as trustee. In addition to tax advantages from the gift, the trust generates income for Parker and will later benefit her son. At the end of the trust term, the funds will be used to create an endowed scholarship named for Parker and her late husband.

“It was ultimately a win-win situation for my needs and hopefully for the College's needs in the future,” Parker says of giving through the trust.

Gifts toward endowed scholarships have a positive effect that ripples through the years. By creating an ongoing source of support, endowment gifts make the Allegheny experience possible not only for today’s students but also generations of scholars to come.

Just as important, those scholarship gifts show students the significance of giving back to their alma mater after they graduate.

Bethany Allen ’22, of Columbus, Ohio, received the Paul C. Morrison ’61 and Barbara T. Morrison ’63 Scholarship. Allen, an economics and French double major and history minor, says that choosing to attend Allegheny was one of the best decisions of her life.

“It thrills me that people like you want to make a lasting impact on the College and are willing to help others,” wrote Allen in a thank-you letter for the scholarship. “I know that I will remember this experience and want to help future Allegheny students long after I have graduated, just like you helped me.”