Continuing Education and Professional Studies

Presidents Leadership Class donation expands scholarships, experiential learning

Anna Tolette — Fri, 31 Jan 2025 22:03:51 +0000

Presidents Leadership Class donation expands scholarships, experiential learning Anna Tolette Fri, 01/31/2025 - 15:03

A ̽��Ƶ family with 100 years of history at the university has committed $2.15 million to expand scholarships and experiential learning for students in the Presidents Leadership Class (PLC).

The Ruyle Family Scholarship, originally established in 2016, now provides up to four years of funding for selected PLC scholars through the family’s $2 million endowment gift — providing students with the financial means to achieve their academic goals. An additional $150,000 will support the Dr. Larry Allen Endowment Fund for experiential learning programs within PLC.

Robert A. Ruyle and Lydia Miller Ryule

These new investments were estate gifts from Robert A. Ruyle (Law’59), who passed away in July of 2024, and his late wife, Lydia Miller Ruyle (Econ, PolSci’57), as designated by their three children and their spouses: Stephen (MCDBio’80) and Stephanie Ruyle, Margaret (Chem’83) and Daniel Rukstalis, and Robin (Class’84) and Keith (Econ’84) Struve.

The family’s contribution honors their long-standing family history at CU — stretching back generations to the 1920s — as well as their experience with PLC.

Creating impact in the Presidents Leadership Class

Established in 1972, PLC is an interdisciplinary, 4-year leadership program at ̽��Ƶ that offers an immersive approach to leadership development. Driven by academic and experiential programming, a diverse community of undergraduates learns how to step boldly into their roles as the next generation of leaders.

“PLC makes you a better citizen — unafraid to use your voice,” said Stephanie. “Giving kids the skills and courage to do that is really important.”

Since 2016, the Ruyle Family Scholarship has provided PLC students with scholarships, offsetting the cost of tuition and helping students to focus on their schoolwork. Now, the family’s expanded endowment will ensure the program can provide support for all four years to students in underserved or underrepresented communities.

“It’s lack of opportunities that holds people back — and one of the biggest lack of opportunities is financial,” said Robin. “We want to make sure people from underrepresented areas — geographically, culturally, racially — can attend CU and be part of the PLC program.”

The scholarship now provides $10,000 a year (for up to four years) for students who meet one or more of the following criteria: 1) first-generation students from a rural area of Colorado; 2) members of a federally recognized Indian Tribe from the Rocky Mountain region, or 3) underrepresented students from Colorado.

Existing students are already benefiting from the scholarship’s support.

“The rich perspectives in PLC are what helps me grow every day,” said Santé Crutcher (Physio’26), a PLC student and Ruyle Scholar who currently serves as the program’s service coordinator.

“It is a community of people committed to making the world a better place for those who follow in our footsteps. PLC is a program that gives back what you give it.”

100 years (and counting!) at ̽��Ƶ

The Ruyle family’s connection to CU has extended over the past century. The first family member to attend, David Jacob Miller (SocSci’1929; Law’1932), studied law and even brushed elbows with future Supreme Court justice Byron White. His daughter, Lydia, later attended as part of the first class of Boettcher Scholars in the mid-1950s. Her future husband, Robert, followed her there to attend law school, and together they cemented their family legacy as Forever Buffs.

The extended Ruyle family

Eager to carry on the family tradition, the Ruyles’ three children, Stephen, Margaret and Robin, also attended CU. They were all part of the Presidents Leadership Class in its early days — with their father, Robert, serving as one of the program’s early trustees, as well as a CU Foundation trustee.

“We grew up with tremendous learning opportunities for four generations of fun at CU,” said Margaret. “Since PLC includes students from all departments and classes, I was blessed to learn and work together with my brother, sister, friends and leaders in Colorado’s private and public sectors — and we continue to support positive changes in Colorado, the U.S. and the world.”

The extended Ruyle family has continued to serve as advocates, supporters and fans of the university over many decades. Stephen, Stephanie and Robin have also served on the PLC Board of Advocates, and the whole family was instrumental in selecting ̽��Ƶ and the PLC program as beneficiaries of their parents’ estate gift.

“Giving back to the community is part of our family’s DNA,” said Robin.

But the family connection to CU doesn’t stop there. Three of Robert and Lydia’s grandkids have also attended: Katie Struve Binswanger (IntlAf’15), Bridger Ruyle (EnvEngr’17) and Remi Ruyle (Phys, Span’20).

Bridger and Remi are also PLC graduates — another reason the family chose to honor the program with their significant gift.

Their family’s long history with the university is a testament to the power of higher education, according to Stephen. “I look at education like a societal IRA — if you’re going to have good citizens and a society that’s productive, education is the building block of all of it,” he said. “Higher education is the foundation for a successful society.”

Upholding the family legacy

By expanding their scholarship and supporting students through the PLC program, the Ruyle family is cementing their role as stewards of the ̽��Ƶ mission.

“Education was core to both my parents,” said Stephen. To continue his parents’ tradition of generosity, he said it was a “no-brainer” to invest his parents’ estate gift in a place so meaningful to the whole family.

And their impact will carry on for generations to come.

“I was a classics major, and part of the classical tradition is that you live on as long as somebody remembers you,” said Robin. “We hope people will remember the generosity of our family — and that we can impact and change students’ lives.”

Learn more about the PLC program, including ways to give, at colorado.edu/plc/donate-plc.

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Curci PhD Scholars find community and advance life science research

Anna Tolette — Tue, 19 Nov 2024 17:33:40 +0000

Curci PhD Scholars find community and advance life science research Anna Tolette Tue, 11/19/2024 - 10:33

April Driver

When Norah Nyangau (PhDIntPhys’25) immigrated to the U.S. from Kenya as a child, playing sports helped her navigate cultural and language barriers with her peers. Years later, this early passion sparked a curiosity for rehabilitation and movement — and eventually led her to ̽��Ƶ, where she’s working toward a doctoral degree in integrative physiology as part of the Curci PhD Scholars Program cohort.

The Curci Foundation established the Curci PhD Scholars Program at ̽��Ƶ in 2022. The goal is to bring together and financially support doctoral students from around the world to pursue research and advance life sciences at ̽��Ƶ.

After her initial childhood inspiration, Norah’s interest in rehabilitation grew throughout her education. She became especially interested in how rehabilitation improves the quality of life for individuals with physical disabilities. ̽��Ƶ’s integrative physiology graduate program appealed to her because of its highly innovative and holistic approach to research.

“I knew I wanted to be in a program that fosters rigorous research training and collaborations with local clinical centers,” she said.

Selected to join the Curci PhD Scholars Program in 2023, Norah received a full scholarship to pursue her work and a stipend to cover living expenses. Norah said that the fellowship was a game changer, helping her find a path to continue her education while allowing her to devote more time to research.

She shared that she can now build a solid foundation to support her dissertation work and future career. After completing her PhD, she hopes to work with vulnerable communities to improve the quality of life for individuals with mobility limitations.

“Growing up in a developing country has provided me with the compassion and desire to work within communities that are often disadvantaged and under-resourced,” Norah said. “I hope that in my future career, I can contribute innovative solutions that push the field forward in improving rehabilitation outcomes.”

Connecting research and community

As part of the Curci PhD Scholars Program, students meet monthly to connect and learn from each other. Each month, one scholar shares their research with their peers — and they also take time for a bit of fun.

In October, Negar Rahimi (PhDIntPhys’25), a second-year PhD student from Iran, presented her research on the ability of machine-learning algorithms to evaluate data and make accurate predictions. Her fellow scholars asked questions and shared insights from their own research, which led to an engaging conversation.

After the presentation, the scholars switched gears to carve pumpkins and socialize. The program emphasizes building personal connections and sharing new cultural experiences by infusing fun activities into the monthly meetings.

“From monthly catch-up meetings in which we share our personal and research progresses to celebrating the holidays together, the fellowship has provided a sense of community that has eased the hardships of relocating to a new environment,” Norah said.

PhD program grows international student involvement

In 2022, the Shurl and Kay Curci Foundation made a $1.9 million gift to ̽��Ƶ to support two cohorts of six incoming graduate students for the first two years of their PhD education in molecular, cellular and developmental biology, integrative physiology, biochemistry, or psychology and neuroscience. The Curci PhD Scholars Program covers the cost of attendance, allowing students to focus on their research. After two successful years, a third cohort joined the program this fall. The Curci Foundation has granted a continued commitment of $500,000 annually to add six new scholars to the program.

The program aims to award two-thirds of the scholarships to international students, helping to break down barriers and expand recruitment in the life sciences graduate program for students who usually are not eligible for U.S. scholarships.

Bolstered by the power of philanthropy, scholars like Norah can positively impact ̽��Ƶ and the world through their research while building lasting connections.

“Along with providing the resources to succeed, I am also connected with other scholars who share similar experiences as international students and provide that sense of belonging,” said Norah.

“I am grateful for the support I received as I assimilated to the new environment, which was paramount in establishing a sturdy footing for me to flourish.”

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