By Nami Nagaoka
According to the YSU News Center, the estate of Ned Kaufman, a Youngstown State University alumnus and former local English teacher, has donated $1.9 million to establish a scholarship in honor of his parents.
This gift from Kaufman is a part of the $100 million “We See Tomorrow” fundraising campaign.
“His goal was to be able to leave a legacy for his parents in their name so that more people could become teachers from Youngstown State University,” YSU President Jim Tressel said.
Tressel said he was surprised about the size of the donation.
“That’s incredible to think that someone can leave that amount of money from being in the teaching field,” he said.
“As long as this world lasts, the scholarship will last,” Tressel added.
Nearly 1,300 undergraduate and graduate students are enrolled in the YSU Beeghly College of Education. They participate in a number of educational leadership programs in addition to their academic courses in education specialties, counselling and school psychology.
Isabel Stoeber, a junior special education major, said she has a deep appreciation for scholarships as she has been awarded several through her honors college since her freshman year.
She emphasized the importance of having scholarships not only help financially, but also mentally.
“It gives [students] motivation because somebody is supporting them … They are going to have more confidence,” Stoeber said.
She said having the scholarship allows her to live on campus and be involved in student organizations that have been helping her to network with others who have common passions.
“I think scholarships give people the ability to branch out of their comfort zone and go to places that they may have not been able to go to without the scholarships,” she said.
James McGregor, a coordinator of outreach for the University of Akron, graduated from YSU with a Bachelor of Science in middle childhood education in 2016.
He had received several scholarships through YSU and the Beeghly College of Education while attending YSU.
“I struggled a lot with finances, and I was able to have a very successful career as an all-around student because of my scholarships,” he said.
McGregor said his scholarships allowed him to have the college experience that he otherwise would not have dreamed of.
“We have an ever growing struggle with our national student debt and this considerate contribution puts many students on track to eliminating and fixing this national crisis,” he said.
“I made so many great memories and I hope to pay it back one day by helping to start a scholarship or assisting students from Youngstown State in any way I can,” McGregor added.