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News & Events Archive
April 2008
The following scholarship and award recipients were announced at the Spring Insurance Society banquet, April 17, at Killearn Country Club:
- Robert T. Powell Endowed Scholarship – Brian Andrews, Cody Baker, Jenna Barnard, Stephanie Hilliard, Matthew McPhillips, Stephanie Scherrer
- Tom C. Johnson Scholarship (FAIA) – Jenna Barnard
- William G. (Buddy) McCue Scholarship (FAIA) – Brian Andrews
- Florida Gold Coast CPCU Chapter Scholarship – Michael Rivas
- Katrina Anne "Katie" Froeschle Memorial Scholarship – Faith Decker, Sean Steele
- E. Ray Solomon Scholarship in Insurance – Shawn Bogdanoff, Stephanie Russo
- Waters Endowed Scholarship – Kevin Gatzlaff, Yuling Wang, Stephen Fier
- Hilton-Oliver Scholarship – Brad Karl
- Elfreda Egger Memorial Scholarship – Rebecca Smith
- Setnor-Byer Risk Management Awards – Grace Chi, Eduardo Rodriguez, Mary Ann Cole Perdue, Amanda Thomas
The following real estate program alumni were named to Real Estate Florida’s 2008 list of “30 Under 30, Rising Young Stars” in Florida: Casey Babb (REE/FIN, 2001), NAI Tampa Bay, Tampa, FL; Alison Frazier Williams (REE/FIN, 2003), NorthMarq Capital Inc., Tampa, FL; Ryan Sampson (REE, 2005), Eshenbaugh Land Co., Tampa, FL; and Genny Spies (REE/FIN, 2002), The Shopping Center Group, Orlando, FL.
March 2008
Andreas Richter, head of the Insurance Institute at Ludwigs Maximillians University in Munich and former faculty at Illinois State, visited FSU to work on research and to speak to RMI students.
John Resnick, host of the nationally-syndicated "Legends of Success," was a guest speaker in several of our RMI courses.
The Florida Catastrophic Storm Risk Management Center to host its inaugural speaker’s forum, March 6, 2008. [More]
Local insurance professionals were guest speakers in the Property & Casualty Insurance Operations class: Sam Miller, Executive Vice President, Florida Insurance Council; William Stander, Asst. Vice President and Regional Manager, Property Casualty Insurers Association of America (PCI); and Jessica Hanson, Public Affairs Manager, also of PCI.
February 2008
The 2008 Insurance Days Student Placement Program (I-Days) was held February 27-29, 2008. [More]
Several members of the Insurance Society at FSU toured the Tallahassee offices of The Hunt Insurance Group/Hilb Rogal & Hobbs (HRH)
on Friday, February 22, 2008.
The Florida DBPR has determined that students graduating from FSU with a major in real estate have met the state’s 300-hour educational requirement to become a certified general appraiser. Graduates of the program are required only to successfully complete the state’s 15-hour standards course, a 3-hour supervisor/trainee course, obtain 3,000 experience hours, and pass the state’s exams. FSU is the first university in Florida to receive such approval under the state’s new standards.
The FSU Real Estate Center hosted its “Real Estate Market Strategies: 2008” forum for Tampa Bay area executives on Thurs., Feb. 21, 2008, at the Tampa Marriott Westshore. The event was sold out. [More]
Members of the Real Estate Society toured the offices of Integra Realty Resources (Tampa), Crossman & Company (Orlando) and The Staubach Company (Orlando). While in Tampa, Society members also attended the 2008 Real Estate Market Strategies forum organized by the FSU Center for Real Estate Education and Research.
Guest speakers in the Property & Casualty Insurance Operations class were representatives from Citizens Property Insurance Corporation: Paul Palumbo (Chief Underwriting Officer); Joe Bouthillier (Director of Agent Services), and Kimberly Abate (Director of Product Development).
Guest speakers in real estate principles included the Honorable Alex Sink, Chief Financial Officer for the State of Florida and former Bank of America president; and Bob Ward, the Chief of Staff for the Florida House of Representatives, a position he has held under Speakers Bense and Rubio.
Todd Davis, CEO of LifeLock, is scheduled to speak in RMI 3011 on Thursday, February 28. Incorporated in 2005, LifeLock quickly became the industry leader in preventing the use of stolen personal information and educating Americans about ID Theft.
Lauren Aument, Zoey Wexler, Brandi Holmes, David Pooser, Michelle Ovits, Lindsey Momyer, Michael Mueller, and Eric Davis, traveled to Orlando for a corporate tour organized by the Insurance Society. They visited Travelers and Liberty Mutual, two of the largest U.S. property casualty insurers, where they met with insurance professionals in various aspects of the business including claims, underwriting, and risk control.
The following senior executives visited as guest speakers in our real estate principles course: Robert Basham, Co-Founder, Outback Steakhouse and Vice Chair of OSI Restaurant Partners, Inc.; Bob Jacobsen, CEO, Jacobsen Homes; Stephen Chapman, CEO, DuPont Registry; and Frank Chavis, CEO, Salt Rock Grill, Inc.
January 2008
Duane Stiller, President, Woolbright Development, spoke to students in the real estate program about investment opportunities in today's market as part of the Evan D. Jennings Executive Speaker Series in Real Estate.
Edwin Pierce, with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Florida; David Halstead, with Kemper; and Julio Romero, with State Farm, are scheduled to speak to several risk management and insurance classes on Thurs., Jan. 24. Collectively they have more than 65 years of experience in the risk management and insurance industry including positions in sales, underwriting, claims, and risk management.
December 2007
The following scholarship and award recipients were announced at the fall Insurance Society banquet:
- Robert T. Powell Endowed Scholarship – Brian Andrews, Monica Czysczon, Brad Karl and Eduardo Rodriguez
- Katrina Anne "Katie" Froeschle Memorial Scholarship - Benjamin Dyches and Stephen Fier
- Ridenour Scholarship for Aspiring Risk Management Majors – Sean Steele
- Waters Endowed Scholarship – Kevin Gatzlaff
- Elfreda Egger Memorial Scholarship – Yuling Wang
- Setnor-Byer Risk Management Awards – Trevor Baldwin, Marie Dieppa, Jeffrey Keaster and Elizabeth McGhee
November 2007
The Risk Management / Insurance Program Newsletter!
Matt Wester, Florida Surplus Lines Servicing Office; Lisa Harrington and Melissa Chapman, Florida Association of Independent Agents, made presentations to our risk management/insurance majors.
Barry Diskin was appointed Chairman of the Right-of-Way Committee of the Florida Energy Pipeline Association and served as an invited speaker at the Florida United Tax Managers Association meeting in Orlando, FL.
Joan Gabel was invited to serve as guest lecturer at the University of Michigan, Ross School of Business, on Bribery and the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.
Randy Dumm currently serves as president of the Southern Risk and Insurance Association. He began his term in November 2007 at the association’s annual meeting in San Antonio.
G. Stacy Sirmans, the Kenneth Bacheller Professor of Real Estate, was recently appointed to the Board of Directors of the Southern Finance Association.
Allen Durham, Executive VP, with the Hunt Insurance Group, LLC, visited as guest lecturer in the insurance company operations class.
The Florida Catastrophic Storm Risk Management Center, to be housed within the Department of Risk Management/Insurance, Real Estate & Business Law in the FSU College of Business, was established by the Florida Legislature during its 2007 regular session. Start up funding ($750,000) to initiate Center operations was appropriated by the Legislature during its October special session and approved by the Governor. Patrick Maroney, the Kathryn McGee Kip Professor of Risk Management & Insurance, has been named to serve as center director. [more]
Dan Carmichael, former president and CEO of Ohio Casualty Corporation and now senior advisor to Liberty Mutual, visited several RMI classes and met with faculty on Nov. 8 & 9. He spoke with students and faculty on a variety of insurance issues.
October 2007
John Priede (FSU alumnus), Vice President with Concordia Properties, hosted the Real Estate Society’s visit to the Southeast ICSC in Atlanta. In addition to attending conference sessions, society members attended a private lease negotiating session, heard presentations from FSU alumni Carl Dickinson and Andria Kriss with Cousins Properties, and met with Warren Strietzel (FSU alumnus), Vice President of Property Management for Centro Properties Group. Leah Crawford (REE/FIN) organized the visit.
The Center for Real Estate Education and Research (CREER) held its annual Real Estate Trends & Networking Conference, Oct. 4 & 5, 2007. Joe Scarborough, former congressman and current host of MSNBC’s “Morning Joe”, opened the event on Thursday evening. Alex Sink, Florida’s Chief Financial Officer and former president with Bank of America, was the featured speakers at the closing on Friday. The event was “sold out,” with almost 600 participants attending.
J. Harold and Barbara M. Chastain were recognized and received the Network’s Award for their generosity to the program in establishing the Chastain eminent scholar chair.
The following 2007-08 scholarship recipients were announced:
- Joan Raley, REALTOR Scholarships – Leah Crawford and Brian Harris
- Crossman & Company Scholarships – Julie Youngblood and Joshua Kucher
- Teel, Teel & Hatcher Scholarships – Mario Battistini, Barbara Bliss, Sharnetta Gallman, William Jensen and Tracy Randall
- James Rudnick and Donald Carrigan Scholarship – Elizabeth Butler
- Appraisal Institute National Scholarship – Mario Battistini
The following 2007 Outstanding Student Graduate Award recipients were announced:
- Kevin Dover, Property Tax Consultants, Miami, FL
- Nicholas Mau, Thomson Property Tax Service, Ft. Lauderdale, FL
- Melissa McRoy, LaSalle Bank, Boca Raton, FL
The 2007-08 Nardozza Fellows, Barry Diskin and Glenn Boggs, were announced.
September 2007
Eric Elms, John LaPrade, and Mathias Maurer, students in our online master's program in risk management/insurance, have had their paper entitled "Hacking of Corporate Information Systems: Increasing Threats and Potential Risk Management Techniques" accepted for publication in the CPCU eJournal. The initial manuscript was written as part of their online course, Risk Management in the Business Enterprise. The paper will appear in the February 2008 issue.
Mario Battistini (REE) has been awarded a 2007-08 national scholarship from the Appraisal Institute in Chicago, IL. This is a highly competitive scholarship. Recipients are selected based on their academic performance, program of study and career interests.
The Katie Froeschle Memorial Golf Tournament was held Sept. 14, 2007 at Crescent Oaks Country Club near Tampa, FL. Proceeds from the tournament benefit the Katie Froeschle Memorial Scholarship Fund for Risk Management/Insurance students at FSU. [more]
August 2007
The Risk Management/Insurance Program at FSU is ranked 4th among public universities (6th among all universities) by U.S. News & World Report in America’s Best Colleges, 2008, ed.
The Real Estate Program at FSU is ranked 11th among public universities (14th among all universities) by U.S. News & World Report in America's Best Colleges, 2008, ed.
Professors Glenn Boggs and Barry Diskin have been named Nardozza Fellows. The Francis J. Nardozza Scholars Program in the College of Business is established to recognize and support scholarly research on a wide range of real estate and urban economic issues.
Professor Randy Dumm has been named the Peoples First Insurance Fellow. The Peoples First Insurance Fellowship in the College of Business is awarded to recognize faculty for work in furthering student programs in risk management/insurance.
Professor Kathleen McCullough has been named the State Farm Professor in Risk Management/Insurance. The State Farm Professorship recognizes faculty for outstanding contributions in the area of teaching, research and service.
July 2007
Joan Gabel was awarded tenure upon appointment at Florida State University. She will be joining our faculty as an associate professor in business law in the fall, 2007.
June 2007
Professor Angela Hall was awarded a McKnight Junior Faculty Fellowship for the 2007-08 academic year. Her research looks at the causes and consequences of an employee’s decision to invoke his or her legal rights in the workplace.
Jamal Grimes (RMI) was awarded the prestigious Fulbright Award. The Fulbright Program for U.S. students is awarded to outstanding students with a commitment to cultural engagement. Grimes received an assistantship to teach high school students in South Korea. [more]
May 2007
The Florida Legislature enacted legislation this session to create the Florida Catastrophic Storm Risk Management Center. The Center is to be housed in the Department of Risk Management/Insurance at FSU. The purpose of the Center is to support the state's ability to prepare for, and respond to, and recover from catastrophic storms by promoting and disseminating research and educational materials. The Legislature appropriated $1 million to initiate Center operations. The Center and its funding remain subject to the Governor's approval. UPDATE: The Center, established during the regular session, received funding of $750,000 during the October 2007 special session to initiate operations.
Barry Diskin's article entitled, "Nuclear Waste Disposal: A Taxing Real Estate Issue" (co-authored with Jack Friedman) received honorable mention for the 2006 William S. Ballard Award. The Ballard Award is presented annually to an author or co-authors in recognition of the contribution and quality of their work published in Real Estate Issues this past year.
Vaneesha Boney (Ph.D student,
FIN) and Dr. Stacy Sirmans (RMI) were awarded a $9,000 grant from the
Real Estate Research Institute (RERI) for their project entitled, "REIT
Exchange Traded Products and the Volatility of REIT Returns."
April 2007
The following scholarship and award recipients were announced at the spring Insurance Society banquet held April 19 at Killearn Country Club:
- Robert T. Powell Endowed Scholarship – Lauren Aument, Janina Bhuvasorakul, Jonathan Cole, Cody Dawkins, Amanda Johnson, Brad Karl, Kayne McPhillips, Megan Myers, David Pooser
- Elfreda Eggers Memorial Scholarship – Jaime Kornick, Kurt Seymour
- Katrina Anne "Katie" Froeschle Memorial Scholarship – Daniel Girardi, Monica Czyszczon (photo)
- Florida Gold Coast CPCU Chapter Scholarship – Grace Chi
- Tom C. Johnson (FAIA) Scholarship – David Pooser
- Buddy McCue (FAIA) Scholarship – Janina Bhuvasorakul
- USAA Insurance Company Scholarship – Brad Karl, Megan Myers
- Waters Endowed Scholarship – Stephen Fier, Kevin Gatzlaff, Yuling Wang
- Setnor-Byer Risk Management Awards – Janina Bhuvasorakul, Robert Davis, Jamie Hitt
Elizabeth Skrzypek (RMI) and
James ‘Brad’ Karl (RMI) were selected to attend the 2007
Risk and Insurance Management Society’s (RIMS) Annual Conference
in New Orleans as part of the Anita Benedetti Student Involvement Program.
Kevin Gatzlaff, Ph.D. candidate in Risk Management/Insurance, has been selected to receive a 2007 Outstanding Teaching Assistant Award.
James ‘Brad’ Karl
(RMI) and Kevin Gatzlaff (RMI Doctoral Candidate) have been selected
by the Spencer Educational Foundation, Inc. to receive 2007 scholarship
awards.
March 2007
Members of the Real Estate Society traveled to Jacksonville to meet with executives of the Joyce Development Group, Inc. and the LandMar Group, LLC.
Mr. Bob Breslau was the featured
guest speaker for the Evan D. Jennings Executive Speaker Series on Wednesday,
Mar. 28. His talk was entitled "The Retail Market and Development
Process” [more].
The following new members were
nominated and elected to the Real Estate Program’s Executive Advisory
Board Conference Committee:
- Marlon Champion, The Ferber Company;
- Joel Embry, CNL Real Estate & Development Corp.;
- Chuck Ernst, LaSalle Bank, N.A.;
- Melissa Hornsby, The St. Joe Company;
- Michael Wallace, Collateral Real Estate Capital, LLC; and
- Lee Weaver, NorthMarq Capital, Inc.
The committee, consisting of 17 members, assists the Center for Real
Estate Education and Research in organizing the annual Real Estate Trends
& Networking Conference. The committee met in Tampa, FL in March
to begin planning the 2007 conference which will be held October 4 &
5, 2007.
February 2007
Professor James Carson was selected to instruct state legislators from across the nation on the fundamentals of risk management and insurance. The instruction is part of an annual program for state lawmakers through the Griffith Foundation for Insurance Education and the National Conference of Insurance Legislators.
The Risk Management/Insurance faculty and the Insurance Society at FSU hosted the 31st annual "Insurance Days" student placement program in Tallahassee, FL. The "sold out" event was attended by 75 recruiters representing approximately 40 insurance companies.
Mr. Bobby Byrd was the featured guest speaker for the Evan D. Jennings Executive Speaker Series on Wednesday, Feb. 21. His talk was entitled "Deal Making and the Developer" [more].
January 2007
Elizabeth Skrzypek and Brad Karl have been selected from a pool of national candidates to participate in the Anita Benedetti Student Involvement Program at the RIMS 2007 Annual Conference in New Orleans, Louisiana from April 29 - May 3, 2007.
December 2006
The following scholarship and
award recipients were announced at the fall Insurance Society banquet:
- Robert T. Powell Endowed Scholarship – Ricardo Agurcia, Melissa Burd, Gamal Codner, Jonathan Cole, Brad Karl, Tracy Lomax, Kayne McPhillips, David Pooser, Elizabeth Skrzypek and Elisa Underhill
- Waters Endowed Scholarship – Stephen Fier, Kevin Gatzlaff and Yuling Wang
- Setnor-Byer Risk Management Awards – Elizabeth Skrzypek and Elisa Underhill
G. Stacy Sirmans, Dean Gatzlaff (FSU Center for Real Estate Education and Research) Stefan Norrbin, David Macpherson and Don Schlagenhauf (FSU Pepper Institute) were selected to join a University of Florida research team in examining the effects of proposed changes to Florida property tax policy in a $500,000 study for the Florida Legislature.
November 2006
Professor William Woodyard was
presented the Ross Oglesby Award. The award, originated in 1973, is
presented annually by the Garnet and Gold Key honorary society to an
FSU faculty or staff member who exemplifies the highest order of integrity,
service and commitment to students and the university [more]
October 2006
The Katie Froeschle Memorial Golf Tournament was held Oct. 6, 2006 in Tampa, FL to raise scholarship funds for graduate and undergraduate students in the RMI program. The tournament organizers, Randy Dumm and Jeff Froeschle met their goal of raising funds to reach the $100,000 level so that it is eligible for state matching funds.
The Center for Real Estate
Education and Research (CREER) held its annual Real Estate Trends &
Networking Conference, Oct. 19 & 20, 2006. Lee Corso, ESPN, opened
the event on Thursday evening. CEOs Shelley Broader, SweetBay Supermarket;
Ed Burr, LandMar Group, LLC; Bruce Mosler, Cushman & Wakefield,
Inc.; Peter Rummell, St. Joe Company; and Duane Stiller, Woolbright
Development, Inc., were the featured speakers. The event was "sold out," with over 625 participants
attending.
The following gifts to establish endowed funds were announced:
- Crossman & Company Endowed Scholarship Fund - established by John M. Crossman to provide scholarships to graduate and undergraduate students in the real estate program.
- James Rudnick and Donald Carrigan Endowed Graduate Fellowship Fund - established by James Rudnick and Donald Carrigan to provide scholarships for graduate students in Graduate Certificate Program for Real Estate Development administered jointly with Urban and Regional Planning.**
- LandMar Group Endowed Fund - established to provide continuing financial support for the real estate program initiatives.**
- Florida State Real Estate Network, Inc. Endowed Fund - established to provide continuing financial support for the real estate program initiatives.**
- Evan D. Jennings Executive Speaker Series Endowment - established to provide continuing financial support for the Evan D. Jennings Executive Speaker Series which brings national real estate leaders to campus to speak with students each spring semester.**
- Francis J. Nardozza Endowed Scholars Fund - established to provide continuing financial support for Nardozza Fellows and their research.**
The following 2006-07 scholarship recipients were announced:
- Crossman & Company Scholarship - Rachel Blackmon
- Teel, Teel & Hatcher Scholarships - Grace Chi and Melissa McRoy
- Joan Raley, REALTOR Scholarships - Michael Havens and Megan Owens
- CCIM National Scholarship Nominees - Michelle Martinez, Melissa McRoy and Tracy Randall
The following 2005 Outstanding Student Graduate Award recipients were announced:
- Joey Grieve, Merrill Lynch, Jacksonville, FL
- Lauren Hanley, NorthMarq Capital, Inc., Tampa, FL
The Risk Management / Insurance program at FSU is ranked 7th among public universities (8th among all institutions) by U.S. News & World Report (August, 2006).
The Real Estate program at FSU is ranked 10th among public universities (13th among all institutions) by U.S. News & World Report (August, 2006).
With course offerings at several hundred universities evaluated by U.S. News & World Report, the Risk Management / Insurance and Real Estate programs at FSU are clearly ranked among the top five percent in the nation.
August 2006
Cassandra Cole, was awarded a $25,000 research grant from the U.S. Dept. of Labor for a study entitled "Factors Affecting the Adequacy of Retirement Income" (with Andre Lienbenberg). The purpose of the study is to determine whether Americans are adequately prepared for retirement and to identify the individual characteristics, employment attributes, and economic factors that most influence the level of retirement preparedness.
John Crossman (REE, 1993) has established the Crossman & Company Endowment Fund in the College of Business. The fund will provide scholarships to students majoring in real estate.
Greg Smersh (Ph.D. University of Florida) joins the real estate faculty as a visiting professor. His research interest is in real estate market analysis and geographic information systems (GIS) applications. He will be teaching real estate finance, appraisal and feasibility courses this year.
July 2006
Professors Randy Dumm, Alvin
Stauber, and Bill Woodyard are teaching insurance, real estate, and
business law courses in Valencia, Spain, and London, England.
June 2006
Dean Gatzlaff and Cynthia Holmes received a $15,000 research grant from the Real Estate Research Institute (RERI) for their work on commercial real estate performance indices. Associated with the National Council of Real Estate Investment Fiduciaries and the Pension Real Estate Association, RERI was created to stimulate high-quality research on real estate investment performance and market fundamentals.
May 2006
FSU faculty ranked 13th among public institutions in real estate research influence based on a citation index covering the last five years, Real Estate Economics, 2006.
G. Stacy Sirmans, the Kenneth Bacheller Professor of Real Estate, is listed as among the top 50 researchers in real estate, based on the citation index published in Real Estate Economics, 2006. [more]
April 2006
James Seneff, CEO, CNL Financial Group was inducted into the College of Business Hall of Fame.
The Insurance Society held its annual banquet and announced the following 2006-07 scholarship recipients:
- Elfreda Egger CPCU Memorial Scholarship - Kevin Gatzlaff;
- Florida Gold Coast CPCU Chapter Scholarship - Jamal Grimes;
- Independent Insurance Agents of Tallahassee Scholarship - Stephen Lancaster;
- Robert T. Powell Scholarship - Ricardo Agurcia, Brian Arleth, James Bruce, William Cage, Gamal Codner, Robert Colclasure, Tracy Lomax, Matthew McPhillips, Christopher Thomas, and Taylor Tollerton;
- State Farm Insurance Companies - Beth Penny;
- Tom C. Johnson Scholarship - Melissa Burd;
- USAA Insurance Company Scholarship - James Karl and Claudia Teyssandier;
- Katie Anne "Katie" Froeschle Memorial Scholarship - Elizabeth Skrzypek;
- Kristen Waters Hood Scholarship - Yuling Wang;
- Cynthia Waters Fletcher Scholarship - Yuling Wang;
- William G. McCue Scholarship - Stephen Lancaster;
- The Setnor Byer Award in Risk Management - Richard Carson, Matthew Gerrell, and Tracy Ridenour
- Robert A. Marshall, retired in April after 30 years at FSU. Dr. Marshall was recognized for his service to the department at the Insurance Society annual banquet.
- The Robert A. Marshall Endowment for Insurance Excellence has been established by alumni and friends in his honor.
March 2006
2005-06 scholarship recipients were recognized at the College of Business Awards Reception at the University Center Club. The following students majoring is Risk Management/Insurance or Real Estate recognized:
- Appraisal Institute Scholarship - Patrick J. Greive and Christopher J. Ryan;
- CCIM Institute Scholarship - Lauren G. Hanley; Hilton-Oliver Scholarship - Lori Newcomer;
- Joan H. Raley, REALTOR Scholarship - Brooke Lewis and Maureen N. Sanborn;
- Robert T. Powell Scholarship - Adam Britt, Robert Butkus, William Cage, Robert Colclasure, Corey Friedman, Jamal Grimes, Andrew Henry-Kennon, Matt Kamensky, Matthew Lake, Stephen Lancaster, Casey Naylor, Perry Palmer, Haley Parrish, Tracy R. Ridenour, Christopher S. Thomas, and Taylor Tollerton;
- Teel, Teel & Hatcher Scholarship - Lauren G. Hanely, Ryan Hunter Jones, Amanda K. Kovacich, and Megan K. Owen;
- USAA Insurance Company Scholarship - Richard Carson and Haley Parrish;
- Elizabeth Skrzypek (RMI) was named as the first recipient of the Katrina Anne "Katie" Froeschle Memorial Scholarship.