FACERS Endowed Scholarships
FACERS invested the $34,000 net proceeds from the National Association of County Engineers (NACE) 2004 Conference that FACERS hosted in Orlando in 2004 to help create four endowed scholarships.
A scholarship committee was formed and tasked to solicit co-sponsorships from the consulting engineering industry to provide a 50% match to enable FACERS to award four, $25,000 endowed scholarships at Florida International University (FIU), the University of Florida (UF), the University of South Florida (USF) and the University of Central Florida. Ramon Gavarrete obtained the FIU sponsor, George Webb obtained the UF sponsor, Bob Gordon obtained the USF sponsors, and Danielle Slaterpryce obtained the UCF sponsors. FACERS and sponsors are honored to provide a total of $100,000 in endowed scholarships awarded in the State of Florida..
We are very pleased to have these opportunities to promote the professions of engineering and surveying in the State of Florida and are grateful to NACE for allowing FACERS to host the national conference in Orlando that made these scholarships possible. We are also grateful to our very generous co-sponsors without whom it would not have been possible to award this many endowed scholarships.
Florida International University (FIU) endowed scholarship: Left to right: Ramon Gavarrete, Highlands County Engineer/Utilities Director and NACE Representative and Avy Weberman, Director of Development, College of Engineering & Computing for Florida International University. The sponsoring company is Chastain Skillman, Inc.
University of Florida (UF) donor for the endowed Karl Kahlert/FACERS scholarship is Karl Kahlert and family. Left to right: Greg Fulginiti, Assoc. Director of Development, Civil and Coastal Engineering, University of Florida; Herb Kahlert, Kahlert and Associates, donor; and George Webb, NACE President and Palm Beach County Engineer, FACERS.
University of South Florida (USF) endowed scholarship donors are: Ayers and Associates, HDR and URS. Left to right: Mandi D. Alexander, Asst. Dir. of Development, College of Engineering, USF; Sylvia W. Thomas, Ph.D., Asst. Dean for Diversity and External Programs, College of Engineering, USF; Bob Gordon, County Engineer, Hillsborough County, FACERS; Hamid G. Bojd, Ph.D., PE, Vice President, Ayres and Associates (Tampa, FL).
University of Central Florida (UCF) endowed scholarship donor is HDR Engineering. Left to right: Hal Lewis, Jr., P.E., Senior Vice President, HDR Engineering, Inc., Danielle Slaterpryce, Public Works Director, Okaloosa County, FACERS, Hector Bertran, Project Manager, Orange County Public Works, FACERS, and Jeff Davis, Director of Development University-wide, College of Engineering and Computer Science, Office of University Development UCF Foundation, Inc.
At the Florida Association of Counties (FAC) awards luncheon held in June 2007, FACERS presented a $25,000 scholarship endowment to FIU, UF, and USF. In November, a fourth $25,000 scholarship endowment was presented to UCF at the FAC luncheon in St. Augustine. These endowed scholarships, in the name of FACERS and our co-sponsors, will result in recurring, annual $1,000 scholarships to deserving Civil Engineering and/or Surveying students in perpetuity. The FAC luncheon venues were a great opportunity to celebrate the awarding of these scholarships. Our local county commissioners from around the state were visibly impressed by the leadership demonstrated by FACERS in providing substantial educational assistance around the state.