Eastern president and his family give $120,000 to EOU Foundation

Bob Davies and his daughter Katie greet visitors at a president’s coffee in July. - The Observer/DICK MASON

He speaks with deep respect for people like Roben Maaske, Eastern’s president from 1939 to 1950, a man who played a major role in helping the university emerge from the World War II era in good health.

Maaske often referred to a Spanish expression meaning “give a little extra’’ when asking people to assist Eastern. Today Davies is asking people to take Maaske’s words to heart and embracing them himself. He too is giving a little extra — make that an enormous extra.

Davies and his family have announced they are donating $120,000 to the EOU Foundation. The gift is being made by Bob Davies and his wife Cindy and their daughter Katie.

“We talked about it as a family and decided that this is what we wanted to do. If we’re asking people to support Eastern we’ve got to do the same,’’ Davies said.

The Davies have directed that portions of their gift go toward the following:

• Character scholarships for EOU sophomores, juniors and seniors. The scholarships will be awarded not on the basis of grades but how engaged students are in helping the campus and the community.

“We want to help students who are doing the right things at the right time for the right reasons,’’ Davies said.

• A faculty development fund. Money from this fund will be used to help faculty further themselves professionally by providing additional money to attend professional conferences, travel to hear speakers in their fields and more.

• A Student Success Fund. Money from it is used to help students with expenses incurred because of success they have enjoyed. For example, members of a club that wins the right to advance to a national competition will be able to apply for money from this fund to travel to the event.

• The EOU Alumni Association.

Davies has been EOU’s president since July 1. He came to Eastern from Indiana University of Pennsylvania where he was vice president for university relations. Davies succeeded Dixie Lund, who served as Eastern’s interim president the past two years.

— Dick Mason