Larson Design Group to match gifts to memorial faculty scholarship

As a commitment to the Pennsylvania College of Technology Scholarship Campaign, Larson Design Group has agreed to match gifts to the Lamont E. Butters Memorial Scholarship dollar-for-dollar up to a total of $5,000.The matching-gift offer has already generated $2,800 in new donations and pledges from Penn College alumni and Larson Design Group employees.The Lamont E. Butters Memorial Scholarship is building to endowed status while making awards with a balance of approximately $18,000. Once fully endowed at $20,000, the scholarship will provide annual awards in the amount of $1,000 to a Penn College student enrolled in the civil engineering technology bachelor-degree major or the associate-degree majors in civil engineering technology and surveying technology.The scholarship honors the memory of Butters, an exceptional professor who gained a reputation for dedication among his students and colleagues. He joined the Penn College faculty in 1975 and earned the Master Teacher Award in 1985. At the time of his death in 2005, Butters was serving as the head of the civil engineering technology department.A significant number of Larson Design Group employees are Penn College graduates from the civil engineering and surveying programs who took courses taught by Butters. The alumni had high regard for Butters as a mentor and professor.“We’re excited that Larson Design Group is not only willing to support the Penn College Scholarship Campaign, but is also willing to encourage others to join in the effort,” said Robb Dietrich, executive director of the Penn College Foundation. “Larson Design Group is respected throughout the Williamsport region for its community involvement. This unique gift is just another example of Larson’s philanthropic culture.”“The LDG Contribution Committee believes the matching-gift approach will enhance the ability to quickly endow this scholarship in perpetuity and honor a man that positively impacted the lives and success of many of our employees,” said Keith Kuzio, Larson Design Group CEO. “We’re excited to see the response that has been generated to date.”Larson Design Group is an employee-owned engineering, architectural and surveying firm headquartered in Williamsport with six other locations in Pennsylvania, along with branches in New York, West Virginia and Texas. LDG provides services in architecture, engineering, surveying, environmental, highway and bridge design, water and wastewater systems, and traffic engineering.The Penn College Scholarship Campaign is an initiative to raise at least $3.75 million for scholarships in conjunction with the college’s Centennial Celebration in 2014.For more information about making a gift to the campaign or establishing a scholarship fund to support Penn College and its students, visit www.pct.edu/InvestNow, email giving@pct.edu or call the Institutional Advancement Office toll-free at 866-GIVE-2-PC (866-448-3272).For more about Penn College, visit www.pct.edu, email admissions@pct.edu or call toll-free 800-367-9222.