Endowed Scholarships Leave a Permanent Legacy of Helping Students

Don and Dolores Tichenor were a fixture at Tri-State and Trine. Don, a 1958 mechanical engineering alumnus, taught mathematics and mechanical engineering courses from 1962 until his death in 1993, while Dolores taught mathematics from 1967 until retiring in 2010.

Then, as now, faculty cared for students.

“People wanted to be in a situation where there wasn’t a ‘publish or perish’ attitude,” Dolores recalls. “We wanted to teach.”

When Don passed away, Dolores wanted to honor him in a way that continued his legacy of helping students. She established the Don R. Tichenor & Dolores M. Tichenor Endowed Scholarship Fund.

“An endowed scholarship is a permanent way to help students, and Don always wanted to help students,” she says. “I hope it will keep Don’s name alive for students who didn’t know him.”

The scholarship has helped students like Jasper Bassett, who graduated magna cum laude with a mechanical engineering degree as part of Trine’s Class of 2019. Jasper is beginning his career at USSI, a company that designs and produces advanced electronics, acoustics and integrated sensor systems.

He wants people like Dolores to know their support makes a huge impact on him and other Trine students.

“You may not always see where your money is going, but it definitely is changing the world,” he says.

Dolores says Don would be pleased to know his impact on students continues.

“He would not have believed that he would have had that much influence on anyone,” she says.

If you would like more information about leaving a perpetual legacy and supporting students like Jasper, visit our planned giving site or contact the Office of Alumni & Development at 269.300.9811 or alumni@trine.edu.