The Gatton Academy of Mathematics and Science on Western Kentucky University’s campus is celebrating a $5 million gift from the foundation that also shares the name of the prestigious academy’s benefactor.
The academy was founded in 2007 as the first residential campus in Kentucky for academically gifted high school juniors and seniors. At that time, the academy’s benefactor, Bill Gatton, donated a $4 million endowment to fund student research projects throughout the summer, as well as needs-based scholarships for study abroad opportunities.
“Over time, those expenses have all gone up. So, the Gatton Foundation has made an additional $5 million gift to our original endowment that will enhance opportunities for students to do intensive research studies over the summer, study abroad, and it will also help pay for needs-based incidental scholarships,” said academy director Lynette Breedlove.
She explained those incidental scholarships help bridge an accessibility gap for students whose families cannot afford the cost of living away from home.
“That funding is really essential for anybody to be able to have that opportunity, not just students who happen to live near Bowling Green or live near a lab at UK or already have connections. So, we can help them build connections in every student no matter their background or interests really,” Breedlove said.
While the majority of the competitive two-year academy’s funding is provided through a state of Kentucky allocation, the gift from the Bill Gatton Foundation covers additional costs to attend, like housing, food, and external networking opportunities for students.
Since its foundation, the academy has had students attend from 118 of Kentucky’s 120 counties.
“Our funding from the state makes Gatton accessible to anyone we select, and then this endowment furthers that opportunity by making sure that students from any background can take advantage of study abroad or spend their summer doing research,” Breedlove said.
Breedlove says the continued support of Gatton Academy and its students is a vital investment in Kentucky’s future.
“Many students who go to college interested in majoring in STEM leave the field. They change their major, they leave the field. But over 80% of our alum major in STEM or STEM-related fields, and so we are contributing to the career-workforce pipeline in STEM fields because of the focus and the support of the Gatton Foundation.”
The funding gift was announced in tandem with the academy’s graduation ceremony, as well as the announcement of a $250,000 gift to the LifeWorks program, also housed on Western Kentucky University’s campus.
Lifeworks is a residential program helping young adults on the autism spectrum learn skills that will help them gain employment and live independently.
“Nationally, autistic adults are employed at a 15% rate. Through the support of donors like The Gatton Foundation, LifeWorks is proud to have an employment rate of 90% for participants who have completed the program. We are forever grateful to The Bill Gatton Foundation for providing resources that directly impact a deserving population,” said Hendrix Brakefield, director of LifeWorks.
The funding will enhance LifeWorks’ Bridge to Independence Scholarship Fund, an endowment meant to increase accessibility for the privately funded program.
The two-year residential campus was opened in 2019, and has since provided hundreds of adults with autism with the means to successfully live and work independently.
The $5.25 million gift is the second largest in Gatton Academy’s history. The largest was a $10 million investment from the Bill Gatton Foundation and other private donors.
It funded the renovation and expansion of the Gatton Academy’s residential home, Florence Schneider Hall, in 2016, increasing enrollment from 120 students to roughy 200 students.
