Administration

Gift creates Trustee Scholarship in name of passionate alumna

A $200,000 gift from the estate of a passionate Penn State alumna has created a Trustee Scholarship in her name.

The Marjorie Mousley French Class of '48 Trustee Scholarship was created with the gift, which already has been paid in full to the University. So, students from the College of Communications may benefit from it as soon as this academic year.

Marjorie Mousley French, known to everyone as "Marti," earned her journalism degree at Penn State in 1948. As an undergraduate, the worked as photo editor of the Penn State yearbook, La Vie. She was also a devoted Penn State football fan, a passion she carried throughout her life.

French crafted a long career as owner of Marti French Village Real Estate in Westport, Conn., before retiring to Boca Raton, Fla., where she was active with the Music Guild of Boca Raton and the Boca Bridge and Ladies Luncheon Club. She also was a supporter of The Youth Orchestra of Palm Beach County.

She died Aug. 10, 2009, at he age of 82. She was survived by two sons, a daughter, six grandchildren and three great grandchildren.

The scholarship created by her estate is the 29th Trustee Scholarship in the College of Communications. During the 2009-10 academic year, 85 communications students received awards averaging $1,250 from existing Trustee Scholarship endowments.

The Trustee Matching Scholarship Program at Penn State, created in 2002 by the Board of Trustees, aims to ensure that a Penn State education is accessible to qualified students, regardless of their financial means. Under the program, the University matches approximately 5 percent of the principal of each gift annually and combines those funds with income from the endowment to effectively double the financial impact of the scholarship.

A $50,000 gift payable over five years or less is the minimum gift eligible for the program. Donors may designate their gift to any campus or college and may specify a major field of such as a first preference.

Last Updated December 14, 2010

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