Osby Lee Hire was born on May 16, 1914 in Macon County, Tennessee to John and Tellie Jent Hire. Osby was a World War II Army veteran, a farmer, and owner and operator of the Western Auto Store in Tompkinsville, Kentucky for 25 years. A member of the first graduating...

The Ovaleta Boucher Scholarship Fund was established in 2004 by Dr. Melissa Dennison to honor the late Mrs. Ovaleta Boucher, Melissa Dennison’s mother. Mrs. Boucher was born April 4, 1918 and was a resident of Allen County, Kentucky. She passed away in Glasgow,...

Mr. O.V. Clark initiated this fund in 1971 as a special benefactor to the College Heights Foundation. Mr. Clark was also known to provide substantial annual scholarship support for needy and worthy students through the years, demonstrating his strong belief in the...

Pat Little was the wife of Dr. Alton D. Little, who was a professor for 37 years in the Parks and Recreation Administration Department. Pat was the mother of their daughters, Patsy Anne and Betty Jean “BJ” Little Levis, who are both graduates of WKU. She was also the...

Patricia Maxine Watkins Beasley was born on June 1, 1955, in Louisville, KY. Mrs. Beasley was the daughter of Clayton and Maxine Powell Watkins, and she was a resident of Grayson County, Kentucky. With two small children at home, she returned to school to earn her...

Patsy Anne Little is the daughter of Pat Little and Dr. Alton Little, a former WKU professor in the Parks and Administration Department for many years. Patsy came to WKU to pursue her higher education. While on the Hill, she earned both her undergraduate and graduate...

Patti Stanton grew up in Tennessee. As a high school senior, Patti felt called to be a band director. Following graduation, she began her coursework at Volunteer State Community College and transferred to WKU as a junior. While on the Hill, she earned both a Bachelor...

Paul J. Hagemeyer graduated from Oakland City College before receiving his master’s at Indiana State University, earning degrees in elementary education and administration. He taught in the Indiana elementary schools of Sullivan, Ella Williams (Boonville), and...

The Paul B. and Ann R. Calico Scholarship Fund in Diversity was established for a worthy student in the Gordon Ford College of Business (1) with prominent academic standing, (2) who has demonstrated integrity, industriousness, and high moral character, and (3) whose...

Paul M. Bush was born October 8, 1958 to Pleas M. and Mary Elizabeth Bush. Paul was a Murfreesboro, Tennessee, native and graduated from Edmonson County High School in 1975. He then attended WKU and earned a Bachelor of Arts in English in 1984 and then with a Master...

Catherine Tate Potter grew up in West Virginia. Known for its beauty, West Virginia’s landscape fueled Catherine’s love for nature and especially for wildflowers, which continued throughout her life. She was married to C. Eastland Potter. Eastland grew up in...

Ralph C. Jones and Martha J. Jones are both proud graduates of WKU. Ralph graduated in 1966, with a Bachelor of Agriculture degree and then earned his master’s degree from the University of Kentucky in 1969. During his time at WKU, he began racing. He went on to race...

Dr. Randall “Randy” Capps joined the English Department at Western Kentucky University in 1962 after teaching two years at Bardstown High School. He graduated from Kentucky Wesleyan College, earned the Master’s degree from WKU and earned his doctoral degree from the...

Dr. Randall Lee Harper, Jr. was born September 28, 1961, in Allen County, Kentucky to Randall Lee and Betty Rippy Harper. He graduated from WKU in 1983 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry before earning his Ph.D. from North Carolina State...

Ray Graham accomplished many things in his lifetime. In addition to being a World War II Veteran, he was a farmer, deacon in his church, biology and agriculture teacher, FFA Sponsor, master mechanic, welding teacher for adult education, and a good and loyal friend....

Rollie E. “R.E.” Chapman was born on May 24, 1908, in Daviess County, Kentucky, to Joseph William Chapman and Ethel Jane Brand. R.E. graduated from WKU in 1939, with a bachelor’s degree in English. He was married to Hazel Irene Wade Chapman. Hazel was born on April...

Rebecca Kaye Howard Whittaker was born March 10, 1943 in Owensboro, KY, the daughter of Harrison N. and Juanita Humphrey Howard. She has a younger brother, Glen. During childhood the family lived in Livermore. They moved to Bowling Green when her father operated a...

This scholarship is established by Tim and Laura Rhea to honor their family ties to WKU. Tim is from Louisville, Kentucky and graduated from WKU in 1987 with a degree in Radio and Television Broadcasting. Tim worked several years in television sports production after...

Darinda Reddick grew up in Cincinnati, Ohio. Following high school graduation, Darinda came to WKU in 2016, to pursue her undergraduate degree. After an active four years on the Hill, she earned her degree in May of 2020. At the core of Darinda’s life is resiliency,...

Rita Grace Ridley was born September 24, 1920, to Alberta Creekmur Chester and Alton Chester. A Dawson Springs, Kentucky, native, Rita graduated from Dawson Springs High School in 1938. The following year, she came to WKU to pursue her college degree. In the late...

Dr. R. K. (Ken) McGuffey a graduate of Allen County High School received a B.S. in Agriculture from Western Kentucky University (‘70) and MS (’74) and Ph.D. (’75) degrees in Dairy Cattle Nutrition from Michigan State University. Post-doctoral stints at Michigan State...

Robbie Baker Allen was the mother of Sue Jent, a loyal supporter of WKU and epitomized the Hilltopper spirit. Sue was a teacher in the Hopkins County Schools System and a member of Retired Teachers Association. She was also a member of the National Music Association...

Robert G. (“Bob”) Cochran was a longtime fixture at WKU. He had a long and prominent career on the Hill from 1948 to 1971, ultimately serving as the Dean of Public Affairs and Public Relations. He originally came to Western as a Freshman in 1939 working in the Public...

This fund was established by Dr. Robert Schneider. In order to provide encouragement and assistance to worthy and deserving students who are pursuing a degree in agriculture at Western Kentucky University. In addition, this action shows the Schneider family’s...

The Robye Anderson Scholarship Fund honors the memory of the late Ms. Robye Anderson and her contributions to Western Kentucky University. She was an outstanding educator in the College of Education for 23 years, and also worked with physical education programs in...

Dr. Robyn Swanson is a Western Kentucky University (WKU) University Distinguished Professor in Music Education. Robyn and her sisters, Dee Ann Bierstedt, a retired special education teacher and Mary Jo Lofstrom, a retired business education-computer science teacher...

Ruby Duffer Daniel was born in October of 1903. After graduating from Boyce High School, Ruby attended WKU, where she earned a Bachelor of Science in behavioral science in 1954. She then spent 39 years as an educator in the Warren County and Bowling Green City School...

Sandy Jones Boussard is proud to live, work and serve in the Bowling Green community since graduating from Franklin-Simpson High School in 1969. From raising her son, to starting a temporary help service business in 1977, to serving local government as a city...

Sara Downing Taylor was born in 1930, to A.C. and Katie Burton Downing in Glasgow, Kentucky, as the youngest of seven children. From her early years in Horse Cave, Kentucky, through her high school years in Dunbar, West Virginia, and beyond, she was shaped by her...

The Sarah and Mark Rogers Physics Enhancement Fund was established by Sarah and Mark Rogers on December 17, 2014. Mark and Sarah met as students at Western Kentucky University when they were members of the Baptist Student Union. They became friends but didn’t really...