Alumni give $1 million gift to Ripon College to promote study abroad

Ripon College has announced that Thomas ’72 and Suellen “Sudy” Reigle Altholz ’73 will give $1 million to Ripon College to promote study abroad experiences for its students. The gift will help fund scholarships for Ripon students to pursue academic study, research or student teaching opportunities abroad.

“The essence of the college experience starts with living away from home for the first time, meeting fellow students from different states and countries, and taking courses that will pave the way for their future,” the Altholz’s said. “Our education never stops, and our travels have allowed us to interact with people from different cultures and better understand our world as a whole.

“We wanted to provide this same opportunity for Ripon students to travel abroad and meet and exchange ideas with peers from all around the world. It is also our hope that this will help the admission process, enhance the college curriculum, and improve students’ lives as they enhance their education and become Ripon ambassadors.”

Thomas Altholz served as a Ripon College trustee from 1989 to 2004.

The Altholz Off-Campus Study Scholarship will benefit all Ripon students seeking academic credit overseas, including the Ripon-led Liberal Arts In Focus experiences that went to Jamaica, Italy, Germany and Spain this past summer, and the semester and year-long study abroad programs of the Associated Colleges of the Midwest (ACM).

“Tom and Sudy Altholz have quite literally given our students the world,” said Ripon College President Zach Messitte, who spent a semester in Florence, Italy, during his own undergraduate years. “Studying abroad is an absolutely integral part of the liberal arts college experience. The Altholz Scholarships allow Ripon students to get a better sense of the world, help prepare our graduates for diverse careers opportunities and, hopefully, also will open up a lifelong love of travel and international ideas.”

Ripon College students have participated in study abroad programs for more than 50 years. During the last academic year, 66 Ripon students earned credit overseas through In Focus, the ACM and other program opportunities. Semester and year-long study abroad programs are available in Costa Rica, Brazil, the United Kingdom, Italy, Jordan, Tanzania, Botswana, India, China, Japan, Argentina, France, Germany, Hungary, Russia, Scotland, Spain and Wales; as well as numerous off-campus programs in the United States.

Posted August 4, 2015 in Alumni, Funding.

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