Giving Makes a Difference: Jim Smart Establishes History Scholarship
James Smart, history professor emeritus and author of Striving: Keene State College 1909/1984, recently established the History Scholarship Fund, to be fully funded through a bequest from his estate. Dr. Smart taught at Keene State from 1966–1994, coming to the College as it was emerging as the notable institution it is today, transitioning from Keene Teachers College to Keene State College.
Dr. Smart has a strong connection to the College and its history. “Since I wrote the history of the College, I was obviously committed to the institution,” he said. “I was lucky enough to receive a small inheritance, and so did my wife. We didn’t spend them, but invested them, and after 30 years, they had grown to the point at which we could do something with them. I realized that there was not a scholarship for history, so I wanted to do something to help history students. I set it up because this is a really nice college in a really nice town, and you can get a very good education here. You can also get a very broad experience here.”
Because the History Scholarship would not be funded until after Dr. Smart’s death, his wife Eleanore decided to jump start it by taking advantage of the IRA Charitable Rollover. Last year, she was required to withdraw money from a retirement account, so she put it into a charitable scholarship. That way, she didn’t have to pay taxes on it, and the Smarts got to start helping History students now.
To Encourage Independent Thought
For someone who wrote the College’s history and has contributed to its legacy through this bequest, it’s also odd that he doesn’t want the scholarship named after him. “That doesn’t have any meaning,” he explained. “I’ll be forgotten soon, if I’m not already.”
“I think there’s a real need for history students who can analyze current events with some degree of intelligence or the background to understand what’s happening in the world,” Dr. Smart concluded. “If a student can major in history and get an understanding of where he/she is politically, or as a citizen, that’s what I want. History certainly isn’t the only course of study for understanding this, but it is one of the main avenues for interpreting the present and becoming a valuable citizen. It helps the person and it helps the whole community. I wanted to support this kind of study.”
The Smarts encourage others to contribute to the History Scholarship. If you’re interested, please donate here or consider establishing a scholarship of your own. Contact Lori Zaniboni, KSC’s Annual Giving Director, for more information.
— Mark Reynolds
