Recently, a scholarship fund was established for students at Pacific who identify as being lesbian, gay, bisexual and/or transgender. The Coral Endowed Scholarship Fund was established by Dawn Holt and Shaun Simpkins, parents of Pacific alumnus Christopher Holt. They donated a condo to the University, which was sold to establish the $75,000 that will continue to fund the scholarship in the future. This was a seperate donation from the initial donation used to begin the scholarship.
Associate Director of Major Gifts Dan Cleveland worked with Holt and Simpkins to establish the scholarship. Simpkins and Holt have funded the scholarship for the past several years, and Cleveland explained that having the scholarship endowed thanks to the recent donation would allow the scholarship to essentially fund itself. Future scholarships will be taken from what the fund makes from interest, so students will continue to benefit from this award.
“The goal of the donors is to give back to a community that was very welcoming to their son while he was here,” said Cleveland.
The Coral Endowed Scholarship will be awarded annually to one perspective student or student enrolled in the College of Arts and Sciences who identifies as being LGBT and expresses financial need. A member of Pacific’s Rainbow Coalition and a representative from the Office of Financial Aid are in charge of selecting a student for the scholarship.
“There is a strong LGBT presence and Pacific is a gay-friendly university,” Cleveland said. Pacific is already very diverse, but Cleveland said that the scholarship will help expand sexual diversity.
For those who would like to support the Coral Endowed Scholarship, call 503-352- 3110.
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