Charles Gavin, ’59 textile management, grew up in poor conditions without many prospects for attending college, but he was awarded a scholarship to attend Auburn that changed the trajectory of his life. Throughout his successful career, Charles has stayed connected to Auburn and always felt compelled to give because of the way that his scholarship affected him and his family. He is a person who even early in his life was giving back to Auburn, and in recent years has contributed to just about everything we do in the college. Our students, our facilities, our faculty, and our programs are stronger because of his commitment.

Natalie Mills, ’10 civil engineering, was ready to quit engineering. However, when she called home one day to inform her parents of her decision, they told her that she had just received a letter in the mail. That letter changed her life. Because of Melissa Herkt, ’77 civil engineering, Natalie received a scholarship, stuck with engineering and has gone on to lead a successful professional career. Now, she is heavily involved with the college’s 100+ Women Strong program, and she’s giving back her time and resources to be that mentor and source of inspiration that Melissa has been for her.

More than half the total raised during this campaign — $126.1 million — was given to support programming within the college. Whether it is student organizations, professional societies, tutoring or advising, our student programming amplifies our engineering education through out-of-classroom and hands-on experiences. One initiative that is making a lasting impact is the Engineering Academic Excellence Program. Through the vision and commitment of alumni and corporate partners such as Bill McNair, Bellsouth, Southern Company and many others, this program is providing our students with the resources and tools necessary to become tomorrow’s leaders.

Every time someone makes a gift to the Samuel Ginn College of Engineering, it’s like tossing a stone into a pond and creating a ripple that has an effect on others. Everyone has their own deeply personal Auburn story. Part of your story includes creating ripples that are affecting the stories of many other members of the Auburn Family. The future of our college is bright, and your gifts during this campaign have touched the lives of each our students and faculty and helped to create their Auburn stories. This would not be possible without the support of everyone who rallied around the college and university during this historic campaign. But we’re not done yet.