I grew up in a family that what not poor, but we had no money. My father died as a young man, and my mother worked to support our family. Fortunately, the cost of attending college was reasonable at the time, and I was mostly able to work my way through school at a factory during vacations and at part time jobs during school including pumping gas and waiting tables. Today, the cost of attending college is much higher, the factory I worked in has long since closed, and gas stations no longer require attendants. I also received some financial aid including a relatively modest student loan. 

I graduated from Indiana University in 1970 and received a master’s degree from the University of North Carolina two years later, thanks to scholarships and Veteran’s benefits. With a quality education, I was able to access good jobs leading to a long and successful career in commercial real estate and corporate turn-arounds.  

I have always believed in giving back, and when I had sufficient funds to pay my needs and provide for my family, I began to donate money to universities to help support students who came from families unable to pay the current high cost of attendance. The first MacDonald Scholarships were set up at Davidson College in Davidson, North Carolina. My two sons graduated from Davidson, and I wanted to make Davidson’s wonderful educational experience available to those with fewer resources. Today, there are ten to twelve MacDonald Scholars at Davidson.

How it works

 MacDonald Scholars receive a grant each semester for up to four years of their undergraduate education. Per agreement with the participating universities, recipients also receive other financial support and are automatically eligible to participate in mentoring and leadership programs.  

The program for each university is tailored to the university, their needs and their resources. But in every case, recipients are required to undertake community service in a supervised program to help others in need. Activities range considerably, depending on the recipient’s specific interests and the university’s connections and resources. Typically, a MacDonald Scholar will undertake at least 280 hours of service each school year. This part of the program is my way of paying-it-forward. The past Scholars have told me how meaningful the pay-it-forward activities have been with many describing their activities as life-changing.  

Currently, there are active MacDonald Scholars programs at Indiana University, Davidson College, The University of North Carolina, The University of San Diego, The University of Michigan, and California State University at San Marcos. After setting up the program and agreeing on policies and procedures, the participating universities select recipients and supervise all aspects of the program. I have no role in selecting recipients. I typically visit the recipients at some of the programs each year and stay in contact with the university program administrators.  

There are about one hundred MacDonald and affiliated Scholars currently enrolled. Many are funded by me personally; others are funded by other donors but are part of the program we originally established. I hope other donors will contribute funds to pay for scholarships at participating universities. These scholarships will be in the name of the donor, and if endowed, will form part of the donor’s legacy. Scholars will be receiving an education and helping others in need in the donor’s name even after the donor has passed. What a terrific legacy to leave.