Business school awarded $8.2 million

The Kelley School of Business was chosen out of more than 20 universities last month to receive a scholarship donation of $8.2 million from the Roy F. and Joann Cole Mitte Foundation of Austin, Texas.\n"IU has some of the finest students this state has to offer," said Scott Mitte, executive director of the Mitte Foundation and son of Roy F. and Joann Cole Mitte. "We felt like Indiana was the right choice for us."\nThe merit-based scholarship program won't go into effect until fall 2004 when scholarships of $5,000 will be given to 60 undergraduate students, said George Vlahakis, manager for media relations in the IU Office of Communications and Marketing. The business school will match the Mitte grants with another 60 undergraduate scholarships.\nThe foundation will also give 15 scholarships of $5,000 to graduate students. The business school will match those scholarships as well.\nAs a result of the donation, the Kelley School of Business Undergraduate Honors Program will be renamed the Roy F. and Joann Cole Mitte Honors Program.\nIt will be directed to freshmen but open to sophomores and upperclassmen, as well, Mitte said.\nIU will also host the annual Mitte Foundation Case Competition for all recipients of the Mitte scholarship program, said Dan Dalton, dean of the Kelley School of Business. The event will give students in the business school a hands-on experience in business case situations under the direction of judges with professional experience in the business world.\n"We provide opportunities," Dalton said. "The Mitte gift is a textbook example of the kinds of opportunities here at the Kelley School of Business."\nThe Mitte Foundation, launched four years ago, is now considered one of the largest business scholarship programs in the country, Dalton said. Other scholarship programs through the Mitte Foundation currently exist at Southwest Texas State University, Texas A&M University, Ohio State University and Penn State University.\nMitte, who works in real estate, said the foundation plans to have 760 business scholars by 2005 and hopes to build the program up to 1,000 scholars someday.\nMitte said applicants for the scholarships should have a 3.45 grade point average and are encouraged to succeed in community leadership and community service projects with local organizations.