WKU received a $5.25 million donation from the Bill Gatton Foundation, WKU President Timothy Caboni announced Saturday, May 10, at the Gatton Academy of Mathematics and Science graduation ceremony.
The endowed fund for the Gatton Academy will receive $5 million, with the other $250,000 going to LifeWorks, a nonprofit that started at WKU to help adults with autism transition into the workforce.
The endowed fund, established by Bill Gatton, who died in 2022, provides Gatton students with internship grants, scholarships and helps pay for study abroad opportunities, stated a WKU News release.
“With his overall personal giving and support through The Bill Gatton Foundation totaling more than $24.6 million in gifts to WKU, Mr. Gatton is one of our institution’s most philanthropic donors, and we are thankful for the trust he and the Foundation have continued to demonstrate,” Caboni said in a news release.
According to a WKU News release, the $5 million gift was the second largest in Gatton Academy history. The largest gift of $10 million was also from the Bill Gatton Foundation and was used to expand Florence Schneider Hall to accommodate roughly 200 students as opposed to the previous 120 students, the Herald reported in 2015.
The $250,000 given to LifeWorks will be used in the Bridge to Independence Scholarship Fund.
“LifeWorks strives to make the Transition Academy as affordable as possible for participants and families,” the LifeWorks website states. “Need-based scholarships are available thanks to the generous support of LifeWorks dedicated donors.”
