Donors

Karen Smith closed the books on her teaching career with the State of Kansas in 2015.  Karen was a beloved teacher who was honored as the Teacher of the Year for the State of Kansas.  This foundation was set up by Karen and her many friends and family to help support the continuing education of worthwhile students from the State of Kansas who want to pursue a teaching degree.

A&F Consultants

Abraham Jacob Briloff (July 19, 1917 - Dec. 12, 2013) was an American accounting scholar and Professor of accounting at Baruch College in New York. He was known for his contributions to accountancy and also as the "most prominent accounting critic."
 

Born in Manhattan to Benjamin and Anna Briloff, Briloff obtained his BA in commerce at the City College School of Business and Civic Administration, now Baruch College, in 1937. Later in 1965 he obtained his PhD in accountancy and taxation at the New York University with the thesis, entitled "The Effectiveness of Accounting Communication."

Briloff began his career in the final days of the Great Depression as high school teacher, teaching bookkeeping and stenography, and as assistant accountant in the accountancy firm of Apfel & Englander. In 1944 he became partner in that firm, and in 1951 started his own accountancy firm. In 1944 he also started lecturing accounting at the City College of New York, where he became a full-time faculty member in 1965. In 1976 he was appointed Emanuel Saxe Distinguished Professor of Accountancy. He later started writing for the Barron's Magazine, a financial weekly.

Briloff was inducted into the Accounting Hall of Fame in 2014. Their argument was, that "for over half a century, he was the conscience of the accounting profession, challenging it to raise standards and to meet its obligations to society. Always motivated by the best interests of the accounting profession, he was respected by both supporters and targets of his criticism."

 

Vision

Our principles are guided by a fundamental belief in limited government, individual freedom, equality of opportunity, self-sufficiency, hard work, and resourcefulness.

Mission

The Herzstein Foundation pursues a mission to support free enterprise, strengthen families, preserve heritage, educate individuals and communities, and provide second chances where appropriate, encouraging individuals to realize their potential and ability to achieve their highest quality of life.

Newcomb was a pioneer in computer systems development with a 32-year career primarily as a software developer and consultant. He was the cofounder of E*Trade and served as vice president of research and development and chief system architect from 1982 to 1997.

In August 1997, Newcomb donated $6.1 million in securities to the College of Business, the largest privately held stock gift in OSU’s history. This gift established the Newcomb Family Endowed Scholarship Fund, which benefits College of Business students. Each year Newcomb visits the College of Business to meet with Newcomb scholarship award winners and faculty and staff designated as Newcomb Fellows.

 

Bob Beine, owner of the Republic Ford Lincoln dealership, is an avid supporter of the college’s automotive programs. He has served on the OTC Foundation Board of Directors since 2009. Beine and his wife offer an academic scholarship to students through the OTC Foundation each year.

“We are proud to support OTC,” said Beine. “It’s important for us to invest in our community, our youth, and the students who are striving to better themselves through the college’s educational opportunities and training programs.”

Dr. Daniel J. and Terri Carey have been dedicated to Catholic education for many years. A 1968 graduate, Dan returned to his alma mater in 1995 to serve as president. Terri, with a master’s degree in reading, was the beloved librarian at Atchison Catholic Elementary School. The two were instrumental in the turnaround that saw Benedictine College grow from a struggling institution with less than 700 students to a nationally recognized Catholic college with more than 1,700 students.

In addition to steady enrollment growth during Dan’s tenure as president, Benedictine College also saw the completion of the Student Union; the renovation of the long-abandoned Freshman Hall into the state-of-the-art residence facility, now known as Elizabeth Hall; the construction of the football stadium, the renovation of the Haverty Center and return of the original Raven Roost; the completion of St. Scholastica Plaza; and additions to the Amino Center. It was also during this time that the college began the Discovery Program and created the Executive Master’s in Business Administration curriculum.

Terri was highly regarded as Benedictine’s “First Lady” and was known for her engaging personality, creativity and the warm Benedictine hospitality she extended to every guest at college events, many held in the president’s home. She also raised two boys, both of whom graduated from Benedictine College, Christopher, ’02, and Matthew, ’05.

Dan serves as President of Edgewood College in Madison, Wisconsin. He has also been the Board Chair for the National Association of Independent Colleges and previously served on the national board for the Council of Independent Colleges. In 2013, the couple was awarded the prestigious Cross of the Order of St. Benedict from Benedictine College.

In recognition of the couple’s outstanding contributions to Benedictine College and its students, friends and family established the Dan and Terri Carey Family Scholarship.

Alumna Deborah “Deb” A. Spannraft ’71  has generously committed nearly $1.4 million in support of the College of Business.

“I had a wonderful experience at the University, and it created a foundation on which I built my career,” Spannraft said.

Spannraft received her bachelor of science in business administration with a major in accounting, and it is her hope that this generation of students pursuing a major in accounting will benefit greatly from this endowed gift.

Spannraft worked for ABC Company from 1972 until she retired from her position as director of accounting in 1995. She is a member of the Donors Society which recognizes  individuals and organizations who have established planned gifts. 

Eber W. Ephlin was born on April 12, 1897, in Framingham, Massachusetts. He was the third child of William K. Ephlin and Helena Kortebein Ephlin. At the time of Eber Ephlin’s birth, his brother, Charles J. Ephlin, was 15 years old and his sister, Anna Veronica Ephlin, was 13.

The family moved to Methuen, Massachusetts, where William K. Ephlin ran the local grocery store. Eber attended public school in Methuen, and graduated from Methuen High School in June 1913. He attended Worchester Polytechnic Institute over the next several years and was awarded a scholarship for the 1916-1917 school year.

Mr. Ephlin started working for Texaco in 1920 in the Engineering Department, and retired as Managing Secretary of the Texaco Worldwide Committee in 1961. He was one of the first engineers hired to build the Port Arthur Texaco oil refinery. He also was elected a Director of First Bank of Groves (later to be known as First Bank & Trust now Wachovia Bank & Financial Center, Groves) when it opened in 1956. In addition to his careers with Texaco and First Bank & Trust, Mr. Ephlin maintained an active interest in investing and continued to pursue his investment activities after his retirement from Texaco.

He lived in the Port Arthur/Groves area from 1920 until his death in 1991. He was a member of St. George Episcopal church and a Master Mason. Mr. Ephlin was elected a LIFE member of Cosmopolitan Lodge No.872 in Port Arthur in 1928 and received his 65 year certificate from the lodge in 1988. Mr. Ephlin and his brother Charles donated the land, at 4200 Gulf in Groves, for the Ephlin Park. He was also the Founder of the Community Concert.

He loved classical music and upon his death still had the violin that he had learned to play as a boy. Mr. Ephlin’s interest in Lamar grew from listening to station KVLU with his second spouse, Grace Booth Ephlin. In 1988, he contributed $10,000 to support the programming of KVLU. Shortly after that he provided in his will that the Lamar components should be the residual beneficiary of his estate “for use by said institutions in establishing the Eber W. Ephlin Fund for needy students attending any of the institutions: Lamar State College-Port Arthur, Lamar State College-Orange, Lamar Institute of Technology and Lamar University- Beaumont”. KVLU plays Mr. Ephlin’s special requests on April 12 and May 19 annually..Part of LSCPA's Endowed Scholarship funding.

The Ernie and Mary Lofton Endowment Fund is available for United Auto Workers' families.

George and Betsy Sherman have a profound belief in the power of education to create better opportunities, better communities and stronger families. Through their foundation, they focus their investments on initiatives for children and education. With their involvement at the Family Tree, the United Way, UMBC and other organizations, the Shermans have worked to improve future opportunities for the youth of Baltimore through programs that can offer hope and results. The Shermans are delighted to be working with UMBC and their outstanding leadership, coupled with a talented and dedicated faculty that will train the next generation of scientists, mathematicians and engineers.

The Jack M. Gould Memorial Fund was established to honor the work of the late Jack M. Gould, former director of the New Bedford Council on Aging, who was active for many years in service to the elderly of southeastern Massachusetts. Mr. Gould’s legacy recognizes the urgency of the study of gerontology.

Judy Winkel was raised on a farm near Ashton, graduated from Sheldon High School, the University of Iowa College of Business Administration, and the University of Iowa Law School. She spent 30 years working as an attorney/lobbyist for a major financial corporation headquartered in Dallas, TX, lobbying state legislators across the nation and Congressmen in Washington D.C. Upon retirement, she felt her hometown roots pulling her back to northwest Iowa. Since returning to Sheldon, she actively supports northwest Iowa through her community service work, including the NCC Foundation Board where she is currently the President of the Board. 

Each individual has a right to equitable access to pursue higher education. This is our belief, and this belief fuels our pursuits as a contributing member of the higher education community. Next Gen Web Solutions’ mission is to create and manage applications and services which allow individuals to more easily access their goal of a higher education.

To do this, Next Gen collaborates with industry participants to design award-winning software and web services designed to solve problems in creative ways. By listening to our customers and watching for emerging trends, we strive to deliver ever-increasing value to each client. With a dedicated staff that adheres to strong moral and ethical principles, Next Gen recognizes the importance of customer satisfaction and operates with high standards of achievement.

Founded in 2008, Next Gen is an employee-owned Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) corporation that develops, owns and exclusively distributes higher education efficiency solutions. Serving more than 350 colleges and universities across the country, our product suites are designed to provide access to information and opportunities for students while enhancing the experience and value they see from our client institutions.

$1,000 scholarships are made available through the generous support of sponsors and attendees at the State University of New York at Old Westbury’s annual Panther Pride Homecoming Celebration. At least one scholarship each will be awarded to a student (if eligible) enrolled in each of the College’s academic schools.
 

Alberta Blue Cross Health and Wellness Graduate Award was established to support the study of health promotion, community involvement and careers in health and wellness among AU graduate students enrolled in the Master of Counselling, Master of Health Studies or Master of Nursing program.