The Gift of Forever

The Ohio University experience is one that shapes and stays with you forever. For Bruce Mitchell, BGS ’75, and his wife Susan, BFA ’83, MPA ’92, their lives became indelibly intertwined with OHIO from the moment they first came to Athens.

“I made lifelong friends, and even though I graduated 40-something years ago, I still have friends I made in the dorm,” Mitchell says. “Looking back, my college years at OU were certainly some of the happiest years of my life.”

Mitchell would go on to found The Athens News in 1977, creating a free and independent source for local news, events and entertainment—and an artifact of Athens culture shared by countless Bobcats over nearly five decades. 

Now in Key West, Florida, the Mitchells are leaving another lasting mark on their alma mater through a gift to the Urban Scholars General Scholarship Endowment, which provides scholarship support to high school graduates of urban school districts in Ohio with demonstrated financial need, desire and motivation to succeed and excellent academic achievement.

“We were very fortunate that our families were able to afford college, but there were many kids who couldn’t,” Mitchell explains. “There are still many kids today who can’t afford college but given the opportunity, can be very successful. I hope, and I’m confident, that this gift will help worthy students, forever.”

Mirage’A Lamb, a sophomore Urban Scholar, shares that the program’s support goes far beyond the scholarship itself, to include leadership training, funding for professional conferences and internships, and a community of fellow scholars. 

“I love having guidance and other people who look like me to associate with,” says Lamb, who is studying information and telecommunication systems. “Without it, I truly believe that it would’ve been a lonelier experience and the connections I have now wouldn’t be here.”

The scholarship not only made college an option for Lamb, but she says the financial support has shaped her OHIO experience in ways not otherwise possible. 

“Without the scholarship, I would not have known the happiness of attending college without being stressed about how I’ll pay my next loan, which then improves my performance in classes and enables me to volunteer and be an avid member in the community,” she says.

To inspire others to support the Urban Scholars, the Mitchells are also directing a portion of their gift to be used as matching funds for OHIO Giving Day 2023. Held April 18, Giving Day sees thousands of alumni giving amounts of any size to support student success at OHIO.

“Every dollar helps, and every dollar works forever. We’re challenging people to step up, make a donation, we’ll match it and we’ll help build this University,” Mitchell says. “We all create a legacy, and an endowment is an excellent way to add to legacy. I hope our gift will inspire other people to think about the opportunities that Ohio University gave them and that they can now provide that opportunity for other qualified students who can’t afford college.” 

To learn more about The Urban Scholars General Endowment, or to make a gift, visit ohio.edu/urban-scholars.

Feature image: Mirage’A Lamb, BS ’26 in one of her favorite spots on campus, the ITS lab at the Schoonover Center where she studies information and telecommunication systems. Photo by Joe Timmerman, BSVC ’23