Ed Willis signs the endowment documents setting up the psychology travel fund in name.
Even after retiring in the spring of 2011, Ed Willis and Jann Freed ’77 are still looking to contribute to their former departments, and more specifically, to future generations of Central College students. Willis, professor emeritus of psychology, and Freed, professor emerita of business management, founded the Ed Willis Psychology Travel Fund and the Dr. Jann E. Freed Scholarship, respectively.
A few years before his retirement, Willis heard a retiring colleague being asked how he wanted to be remembered at Central—and Willis knew it wouldn’t be too long before he was asked the same thing.
“I got to thinking what had been most important to me during my career,” Willis says. “What I adamantly promoted was student professional development. It’s a passion of mine. So I started to think at that time how could we raise the money for these students to go to regional conferences.”
With a tradition of psychology students traveling to conferences to present their research, Willis wanted the hypotheses and conclusions to keep on coming. The Ed Willis Psychology Travel Fund will be used to assist students with the costs of attending regional and national psychological conventions where they can present the work they are doing at Central.
“This is for my students,” says Willis. “I may not be teaching any longer, but it so important that we continue to give to the next generation coming through Central’s doors.”
Jann Freed ’77 taught at Central for 30 years before retiring in 2011.
Freed wholeheartedly agrees that the money be used to advance student development. Since her retirement, she has been working to set up her endowed scholarship for business management students.
“The business management department has a great tradition of developing student scholarships, and I wanted to be a part of the strong tradition,” Freed says. “I wanted some kind of legacy that would help students continue to professionally grow in this field.”
The Dr. Jann E. Freed Scholarship is for a student with a declared major in business management, a current grade point average of 3.0 and demonstrated financial need.
The Ed Willis Psychology Travel Fund will be available to the psychology department starting in the spring of 2014, and the Dr. Jann E. Freed Scholarship was awarded for the first time in the fall of 2012.
Help continue the strong legacies of these beloved professors by contributing to their endowed funds. Gifts to the general endowed scholarship fund or to existing endowed funds can be of any size. Visit www.central.edu/makeagift to contribute to the professional development of current and future Central students.
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