ISU receives $250K gift for travel endowment
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An Indiana State University Foundation board member and her husband have pledged $250,000 to support a travel grant endowment at the school.
The gift to the College of Arts and Sciences is similar to a gift that Sandy Senior-Dauer and her husband, Keith Dauer, gave to the history department in 2020 to encourage student and faculty travel abroad.
This latest gift will support semester-long study grant programs, faculty-led international trips and other short-term domestic and global study opportunities, the university said.
“The generosity of Sandy Senior-Dauer and Keith Dauer speaks to the heart of what it means to be a Sycamore: to explore boldly, to give generously, and to learn without boundaries,” ISU President Mike Godard said in a news release. “Their investment in the intellectual and cultural growth of our students and faculty extends far beyond financial support—it empowers discovery, inspires connection, and fosters a global perspective that is essential in today’s world.”
Senior-Dauer is a graduate of the College of Arts and Sciences. She received her bachelor’s degree in social studies teaching in 1968 and her master’s degree in history in 1969. She and her husband both pursued careers in education, the university said, and together they have visited more than 95 countries.
“Travel has always been one of the most powerful forms of education in my life. My first journey abroad after graduating from Indiana State opened my eyes to the richness of history, culture, and global perspectives,” Sandy Senior-Dauer said in the release. “Research isn’t just done in libraries and labs—it’s found in real-world experiences, in conversations with people from different backgrounds, and in walking through history and culture firsthand.”
Four students were the first recipients of the Senior-Dauer College of Arts and Sciences Travel Grant Endowment. Three are enrolled in music education and will use the funds to participate in the 50th Classical Music Festival in Eisenstadt, Austria, in August 2025. The fourth recipient, a psychology student, will take part in Rocket Kids summer study to provide services to U.S. military youth.
The endowment also will partially fund an interdisciplinary scholarship grant for faculty. The first recipients are William Ganis, professor of art, and Jim Speer, professor of geography and geology.
To qualify for the grant, students and faculty members must be pursuing majors and minors within the College of Arts and Sciences.