A $2.2 million gift from an IU Kelley School of Business alumnus and his partner will fund a new LGBTQ scholarship program.
Alumnus Doug Hamilton and his partner Don Vossburg will fund the annual “Out in INformation Technology Scholarship."
“I wanted to have an ongoing impact so students can continue their education no matter who they really are,” Hamilton said in an IU press release.
He and Vossburg decided to start the scholarship after reading about an IU student who came out and was cut off from his or her family, the release said.
The annual scholarship will be given to a student “actively involved with the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer community,” an IU press release said.
Preference will be given to in-state students studying operations, decision technologies and business analytics.
"It supports our LGBTQ+ students, it further enhances scholarship opportunities for underrepresented students and it helps create a more diverse and inclusive environment at Kelley and, down the road, in the corporate world,” said Idalene Kesner, a Kelley School of Business dean.
Hamilton graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in mathematics and psychology from IU in 1976 and a master's of business administration in 1978. Retired now, he worked at the global management consulting firm Accenture for 21 years and Eli Lilly and Co. for 17 years. He and Vossburg have been together 35 years.
