News release prepared by: Andrew Zender, 785-532-7648, andrewz@found.ksu.edu

Thursday, June 23, 2011

PORTER HONORS FAMILY THROUGH $1 MILLION BEQUEST TO K-STATE

MANHATTAN -- Alan Porter, Santa Barbara, Calif., may not have graduated from Kansas State University, but it still holds a special place with his family and in his heart.

His father, Clare R. Porter, one of the six children in his family who attended the university, graduated in 1937 from the K-State College of Agriculture. Clare's brother Kenneth Porter received his doctorate from the university in 1940. Alan's mother, Georgiana Avery Porter, graduated in 1938 from the College of Human Ecology, and his uncle -- Georgiana's brother -- Thomas B. Avery, was the head of the poultry department at K-State. Thomas' son Thomas Jr. was a professor of veterinary medicine at the university.

And now to honor his parents and the generations of K-Staters from their families, Porter has made a $1 million bequest to the College of Agriculture at Kansas State University to establish the Porter and Avery Family Agriculture Scholarship.

Porter, who earned his bachelor of science from the University of Nebraska in 1964 and his juris doctorate from the University of Denver in 1967, has lived in Santa Barbara for the last 25 years and is an independent real estate investor. He is a member of the KSU Foundation Presidents Club, a philanthropic leadership group of alumni and friends who support K-State. 

"Although I didn't attend K-State, I naturally feel a strong bond with the university. This scholarship honors my mother and father's families, and I hope that it provides students in the College of Agriculture with the financial assistance they need," Alan Porter said.

"Alan's gift will be a tremendous factor in recruiting, supporting and rewarding the finest students and outstanding faculty at Kansas State University," said Kirk Schulz, K-State president.  "This gift will help advance the institution toward its goal of becoming a top 50 public research university by 2025."

Philanthropic contributions to K-State are coordinated by the Kansas State University Foundation. The foundation staff works with university partners to build lifelong relationships with alumni, friends, faculty, staff and students through involvement and investment in the university.