New Endowed Scholarship, Award Will Fund Deserving Students at UAB

The Board of Trustees of the University of Alabama System approved the establishment of a new endowed scholarship and a new endowed award at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) during its April 17 meeting.

April 21, 2009

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Board of Trustees of the University of Alabama System approved the establishment of a new endowed scholarship and a new endowed award at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) during its April 17 meeting.

The board established the Virginia D. Gauld National Alumni Society Endowed Scholarship, named in honor of the former UAB vice president for Student Affairs. The board also approved the establishment of the Ray L. Watts, M.D., National Alumni Society Endowed Award.

Virginia D. Gauld National Alumni Society Endowed Scholarship

The Virginia D. Gauld National Alumni Society Endowed Scholarship, made possible with more than $25,000 in contributions from the UAB National Alumni Society as well as friends, family and colleagues of Gauld, will assist deserving students at UAB.

Gauld was vice president for Student Affairs from 1990 until her retirement in 2006. The board praised Gauld as "the visionary force" behind the successful development of significant campus improvements, including construction of new residential halls, the Campus Recreation Center, the Commons on the Green dining facility and the Campus Green. The board also cited her efforts to promote diversity on campus and the creation of a disaster relief fund and committee to aid students displaced to UAB by Hurricane Katrina.

Ray L. Watts, M.D., National Alumni Society Endowed Award

The Ray L. Watts, M.D., National Alumni Society Endowed Award is named after Watts, chairman of the UAB Department of Neurology and president of the UAB Health Services Foundation. The endowment will provide awards to deserving students at UAB. Watts is a 1976 graduate of the UAB School of Engineering.

The board praised Watts for demonstrating "exemplary service to and generous support of the University and specifically the UAB National Alumni Society."

"The National Alumni Society is very pleased to support the new scholarship and the new endowed award for the students," said Rebecca Watson, associate vice president for Alumni and Annual Giving. "We continue to look for opportunities to assist the students and the university, especially in these challenging times. This past year, the National Alumni Society gave more than $700,000 in scholarships, grants and gifts back to the university."

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