BG Benjamin B. Talley Scholarship Endowment Fund
History
Through the Fund, created in 1997 in honor of Brigadier
General Benjamin B. Talley, a distinguished engineer popularly known as the
father of military engineering in Alaska, the Anchorage Post contributed $258,500
(1999-2019) toward college scholarships for upper-division students in
engineering and natural science degree programs.
A Board of Trustees, volunteers who are
elected by the members of the Anchorage Post for three-year terms, is charged
with management of the Fund. The Board holds quarterly meetings and works closely
with a financial account manager First National Bank Alaska, who manages the
Talley Fund primary endowment. The Board recently established a separate
endowment with the Alaska Community Foundation which has ability to accept
non-traditional donations in the form of non-traditional cash assets.
On average, around $25,000
in scholarships are presented during the Post’s annual banquet. Additional
scholarships from separate funding sources, such as the Anchorage professional
services community, are also presented.
Eligibility
Applicants Must Be:
- (1) A Resident of Alaska; (2) A Student attending college in Alaska; (3) an Active Duty/Reserve/National Guard Service Member; or (4) A Dependent of a Military Service Members stationed in Alaska
- A SAME Anchorage Post Member (as a reminder, Post membership is free for students!)
- A Sophomore, junior, or senior student of engineering, architecture, construction or project management, natural, physical, or applied science, or mathematics at an accredited college or university
- A Citizen of the United States of America
- Have a GPA of 2.5 or greater
- Not currently on a full (tuition, room and board, books) scholarship
How to Apply
All eligible personnel are encouraged to apply!
- If you are not already an SAME student member, click here to join.
- Open the SAME Scholarship Portal and create an account.
- Start an application for the Anchorage Scholarship Application.
- You can save your progress and make edits until your application is submitted. You will need to upload your transcript and essay in .PDF format.
- Submit your application and required documents by December 28, 2022.
How You Can Help
There are several ways by which you can
support the Talley Fund!
1.
Donation by Check
2.
Donation Online
3. Leaving funds from a
Retirement Account
4.
Leaving a Legacy
through Your Will
5.
Leaving funds from
Life Insurance
6.
Donating Appreciated
Stocks
Click here to learn more!
In addition to these methods, we also
encourage you to contact the Alaska Community Foundation and/or your tax
advisor to discuss charitable gift planning to the Talley Fund. Your legacy gifts will help ensure the Talley
Fund is well positioned to support deserving students in Science, Technology,
Engineering and Math studies for many years to come!
From Talley Scholarship recipients:
“Five years after graduating with a Bachelor of Architecture I am still thankful for the SAME Anchorage Post’s support and generous contributions to my education. The Benjamin B Tally Foundation and local businesses do more than offering scholarship money to college students; they take a moment every year to highlight the achievements of students and celebrate the successful future Engineers, Architects, Contractors, and Scientists of our World. For me, that is the true moment of joy that this program gives; a welcoming embrace and encouragement for students entering into the engineering and science professions.”
Michelle Gallagher, Assoc. AIA, LEED AP BD+C
“After four and a half years of sweat, blood and tears, I am now a UAA alumni with a degree in Electrical Engineering. School is rough and looking back now I wonder how I ever made it through. I look back at all the support I had; from family, friends, and scholarship supporters. These are the people who believed in me and helped me continue to keep persevering and pushing myself to reach my goals. Scholarships helped tremendously throughout my college career. I did not work during the school year because I liked to have the ability to fully concentrate on school and my learning. I saw other students who struggled as they worked part time or even full time on top of a full load of classes. I am very blessed and thankful to have had the support I had throughout these years. I am also proud to say that I have absolutely no student loads to pay off and I know I would not be able to say that without the support from scholarship donors like SAME.”
Deborah Morales, EIT/ Electrical Engineer in Training
“The SAME scholarship is very important to me achieving a degree in Computer Science with concentrated study in human and computer interaction. It will help me help others in developing technology that improves people’s standard of living. Thank-you for helping me achieve this goal!”
Johanna Lucht, Student Computer Science
The endowment is funded primarily by donations from the Post and individuals. Fund-raising activities such as training seminars, the Annual Banquet Raffle, golf tournament, and “split the pot” at Post meetings provide funds toward contributions from the Post. At times, sustaining Members generously provide matching funds for scholarships, which allow the Fund to provide more scholarships. All gifts are tax-deductible, as allowed by law.