Penn State Altoona Trustee
Matching Scholarship Endowed in Honor of Distinguished Faculty Member
Through the generous philanthropic support of colleagues, family, and
friends of Penn State Altoona faculty member Dr. Athleen J. Stere, a $50,000
Matching Trustee Scholarship has been endowed at the college in her name. The
creation of the scholarship was announced today by Dr. Lori J. Bechtel,
Chancellor of Penn State Altoona, during a tribute to Dr. Stere in celebration
of her 85th birthday and over four decades of service to the University.
An associate professor of biology, Dr. Stere has been a member of the Penn
State faculty since 1963. She accepted an appointment at Penn State Altoona in
1971 and, during the ensuing years, has been recognized as an outstanding
educator on several occasions. In 1980, the University bestowed upon Dr. Stere
the prestigious Lindback Award for Distinguished Teaching. In 1999, Dr. Stere
received the Women in Leadership Award, sponsored by Penn State’s Commission
for Women. In addition to several other awards for faculty excellence and
distinguished teaching, Dr. Stere has received the Faculty Member of the Year
Award, presented by Penn State Altoona’s Student Government Association. In
2003, Dr. Stere was presented the YWCA Tribute to Women Award in recognition
of her leadership in promoting awareness of the significant role of women in
the economic growth and quality of life in their community.
Dr. Stere earned a bachelor of arts degree in Biology from Bryn Mawr
College and a master’s degree in Biology from Harvard University where she
also fulfilled nearly all the requirements for her doctorate in biology. Dr.
Stere completed her doctoral dissertation at Penn State. A ground breaker in
the field of science, she was the first woman to be offered a teaching
fellowship in biology at Harvard. Her research at Penn State, Einstein Medical
Center in Philadelphia, and Boston University Medical School has been funded
by grants from the American Heart Association, National Science Foundation,
and National Institutes of Health, among others.
The Dr. Athleen J. Stere Matching Trustee Scholarship will benefit
students at Penn State Altoona majoring in biology. Penn State’s Matching
Trustee Scholarship Program is a groundbreaking partnership between the
University and donors who are helping to make a Penn State education
accessible and affordable to those students with the greatest financial
challenges. The Matching Trustee Scholarship program effectively doubles the
impact of private philanthropy by using University funds to match
contributions to need-based undergraduate scholarships. A minimum gift or
pledge of $50,000 is required to create a Matching Trustee Scholarship.
