IT Milk: entry

Dr. Edward M. Frymoyer of the Penn State IST Advisory Board gave me a scholarship for the 2007-2008 school year. So, as standard practice goes, Penn State mailed over a letter announcing the details of the scholarship along with a sentence that goes, “I strongly encourage you to acknowledge your gift with a thank-you letter to the donor.” I figured that I should also write a thank you note on my blog since I have the means of publishing online.

Dr. Edward M. Frymoyer is a man of many accomplishments, as apparent on his profile on the IST Advisory Board.

• Founder of Infinity I/O, an international company that trains corporate professionals in high-speed information infrastructures and storage networks.
• Founder of Pulsar Ventures (now dead?), a VC company that focuses on nano-technology.
• Chairman of EMF Associates, a consulting company that offers services for integration of information technology infrastructures.
• Program Manager for the Fibre Channel Systems Initiative at Hewlett Packard in the 90’s.
• Ph.D. in Physics from Penn State University.
• Membership in the IEEE, SMPTE, SPIE and Sigma Xi.
• Member of the advisory boards for the College of IST and the College of Science at Penn State University.
• Sits on the Board of Directors of the Penn State Research Foundation

I have deep respect for all individuals and families who donate their wealth to funding student scholarships. I’m sure there are some attractive tax benefits, but you have to be selfless in some sense to give away your hard-earned money to complete strangers — especially young college students. And this is why scholarship recipients must write thoughtful and detailed thank-you letters so that donors can be assured that their money is being used to truly benefit the selected students.

In this case, Dr. Frymoyer’s scholarship money will go to good use, and I will prove this throughout the following semesters by showing excellence with my grades, research, and extra-curricular activities. Dr. Frymoyer will not be disappointed, and I plan on meeting him when he visits Penn State University to show him some evidence and credentials.

Penn State Scholarships

There are so many scholarships available to college students that you could go to school for free if you just dedicated yourself to finding these opportunities. You should start off by checking out this free scholarship guide.