$6M Gift to Fund Scholarships, Chairs

Walter graduated from IU Bloomington in 1972 with a degree in economics.

Indiana University’s College of Arts and Sciences will use a $6 million gift to endow new faculty chairs and create scholarships. The donation comes from Los Angeles-based investment analyst and IU grad Ralph Collins Walter.

Half of the gift will endow one chair in the Department of History and one in the Department of Economics. The other half will fund new scholarships through Arts and Sciences Career Services, which will be renamed the Walter Center for Career Achievement in honor of the gift. The scholarships of up to $5,000 each will help students with travel, tuition and living expenses while participating in internships.

Walter graduated from IU Bloomington in 1972 with a degree in economics. He recently retired after a career in the financial sector, including time as chief operating officer and treasurer for investment management firm Kanye Anderson Rudnick. He also sits on the IU College of Arts and Sciences Executive Dean’s Advisory Board.

Walter says his gift comes because he believes he has "an obligation to help others to have the same opportunities that I had." In a release, he said, "Students must realize that being a student is having a job. You have to learn how to learn. You have to acquire the skills that allow you to get your first job, but also the skills that will allow you to have a meaningful career."

This gift is part of the $2.5 billion campaign, For All: The Indiana University Bicentennial Campaign.