Together

Why I give

Laura B. Smith Faculty Scholar Fund

Murray Smith’s mother, Laura, had a master’s in fine art and – because of student debt and employment restrictions during the Great Depression – worked in academic positions across the country (with Murray and away from her husband, who taught history) until both academics reunited in Corvallis at OSU in 1945.

During this era of economic hardship, it was common practice to only hire one qualified full-time faculty per household – in order to spare a job for another family. Laura frequently had just part-time assignments in Corvallis, teaching interior design, mechanical drawing and other subjects.

To honor his mother, Murray Smith and his wife, Linda Smith, created an endowed faculty scholar fund in remembrance of his mother’s career as design faculty at OSU. It is designated to support College of Business professors in the area of interior and apparel design.

Why I give

Student Success Scholarship Fund

R. Stevens Gilley, ’56, first came to Oregon State University as a 17-year-old with the notion to be a veterinarian, but freely admits that he was “not equipped or prepared.”

Gilley instead graduated from the College of Business and built a career in commercial real estate and the hotel business that spanned five decades and included leading his own business, The Gilley Company.

Now, the Gilley Family Excellence in Student Experience Fund provides annual awards to faculty and programs that are essential to student success in the College of Business.

“Oregon State has meant so much to me. I was treated so well when I was a student,” Gilley said. Gilley watched his granddaughter, Emma, complete a successful year, and agreed that he’d like to support more students from the beginning.

In 2017, Gilley, who was one of the first donors to the Austin Hall building fund with a classroom in Austin Hall named for his family, became one of the early contributors to Dean Mitzi Montoya’s “$20 million by 2020” student success and scholarship fund.