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Three women working to make the School of Education’s “World of
Difference” capital campaign a success believe that the most effective
way to lead is by example.
Previous Dean Karen Wixson and campaign co-chairs Judy Frey (A.B. Ed ’59), and Karen Shook (A.B. LSA ’69), with support from their families, each instituted planned gifts that will fund scholarships within the school for years to come. “Our most pressing need is for scholarship funds,” stated Karen Wixson.
To do her part in helping to meet that need, Wixson and her parents, William (A.B. LSA ’43) and Sara (A.B. LSA ’43) established the Kring Family Scholarship. Wixson was born in California, moved to Long Island as a sixth grader and went on to receive her undergraduate degree from the University of Wisconsin, and graduate degrees from SUNY-Binghamton and Syracuse University.
“My parents met as undergraduates at UM in the early 1940s, while playing chamber music at an Ann Arbor hotel,” she explained. “ They were married on campus and both had careers as professional musicians. Professional musicians don’t make a lot of money, but my dad has always had a strong giving ethic—witness this gift, which was his idea.”
Karen Wixson’s father, a Blissfield, Michigan native, said his desire to make a gift to the University stemmed from his experience as an undergraduate. “Along the way, I received gifts from others when help was needed. I felt I wanted to give back some of what I was given.” His daughter’s employment as Dean was not the only reason for the gift, however. “I have always been an advocate for education,” Kring explained. He said another of his daughters told him she never questioned whether she and her two sisters would go to college, only where they would choose to go.
Kring has no specific intent for the Kring Family Scholarship, the scope of which is still under development. He said he hopes only that the recipients “might take the fullest advantage possible of any help given,” much as he himself did, “and that the help that is given might serve to ease and enhance students' efforts in gaining their educational goals.”
Alumni giving is a critical factor to the success of the School’s capital campaign. In seeking the individuals who would lead the campaign, Karen Wixson and the development staff wanted to find alumni who shared the belief that “educational philanthropy is a partnership between an individual with a passion for making a difference and an institution with the vision and means to make a difference.” Co-chairs Judy Frey and Karen Shook typify that belief.
As part of the current campaign, Frey and her husband, David, established the Vera K. Campbell Scholarship, in honor of her mother.
“I felt that the School of Education often got the short straw when it came to giving and donations, and I have been outspoken about that dilemma,” Frey said. Her frankness struck a chord with her husband, who came up with the idea for the scholarship, which is intended to provide tuition support for graduate students in education from the Grand Rapids area.
The scholarship is funded through the Frey Foundation, established by her husband’s parents, Edward (BA 1932} and Frances Frey. Frey said that even though her husband is not a UM alum (University of North Carolina graduate) he felt an allegiance to the University through his parents. Advancement Director Stephen Bates applauded the Freys' process of allocating family donations, and said he hoped more families, facing the challenge of giving on behalf of both spouses, think about dividing resources between schools, so that each spouse feels represented and rewarded.
In helping to lead others through this decision making process, Frey said, she sees her most important role as championing the SOE cause to alumni. To do so effectively she must “stay informed, be alert to networking opportunities, be supportive of staff and faculty, and finally, be enthused and able to transmit a sense of real value in investing in the School of Education and the University of Michigan.”
The job description is a familiar one for Frey. In 1990 she founded The Issue Network Group, a consulting business that connects the non-profit sector and the for-profit sector by developing corporate giving programs and creating a website which shares information about the two sectors (businessesforcommunity.com). In 1999, she was elected Mayor of East Grand Rapids and enjoyed that office for four years. Prior to those careers, Frey worked in her degree field as a speech therapist in the Grand Rapids Public Schools, the Kent Intermediate School District and the Grand Rapids Speech and Hearing Clinic, and raised six children. She is currently semi-retired, living in Michigan and Florida
The planned-giving technique the Freys' chose is called a “charitable remainder unitrust,” which pays a dividend to her mother during her lifetime, while the principal amount of the gift continues to grow. Afterward the principal reverts to the University to fund future scholarships. Frey saw the merits of funding a scholarship as two fold. It benefits the university and, “It was a wonderful way to provide some needed income for my mother,” she said.
Frey chose to fund a graduate level scholarship because she said they often go to individuals returning to the university to begin a second career, and these students really value the education that enabled them to obtain their first career. “They understand that without their K-12 education they would not have been a doctor, lawyer, CEO, etc. so they can be very good messengers about the value and importance of education.”
Someone who also understands that very well is the campaign’s co-chair, Karen Shook. Shook is a former president of the Washington, D.C., School Board who “is very passionate about education and the University of Michigan and about the types of teachers the University produces.” Shook also feels very strongly about the need to teach teachers about the possibilities of public education, and is endowing a scholarship, in honor of her mother, for teachers interested in urban school systems.
Shook established the Lois Hansen Scholarship for Urban Education. “I wanted to set up a scholarship in my mother’s name,” she said. “My mom did not go to college but made sure her two daughters did. She went back to work when we were in high school, so we could to go to college.” When asked if her mother was a teacher, Shook replied, “No, she was a legal secretary, but yes, she was. Parents are our first teachers.”
Shook will make cash contributions to fund the scholarship in her lifetime, and has created an estate plan that will increase the scholarship after her death. Shook met her husband, Langley, while she was a student in the School of Education and he was in the Law School. They were married while in Ann Arbor, moved to Chicago for a few years and finally settled in the D.C. area. They have two children.
Shook is currently project director for Schools That Work, a non-profit production company in Washington, D.C., that creates television programs and webcasts showcasing successful education strategies. The TV shows and webcasts provide resources and helpful tips on how school districts around the country can replicate these success stories.
Shook sees her role as co-chair of the campaign as one of continuity and leadership. “We’ve had quite a bit of turnover within the University…but I feel I got in at the ground level two years ago, and I have watched the process grow.”
During a campus visit in 2001 to meet the Dean and faculty and discuss campaign goals, Shook said a statement made by a professor struck her. “He said we are preparing young people to be leaders for a world that does not yet exist.” Shook mused that the world is a much different place than it was 30 years ago and asked, “What is the world going to be like 30 years from now? That’s what is so important about this campaign, to ensure that the School of Education continues to be among the leaders and the best.”
by Peggy Kelley Herron
Published Spring 2004
