By Larry B. Dendy

Alumnus Bernard B. Ramsey, who died in July, left a gift valued at $18.8 million in his will to enrich the Foundation Fellowship program, which provides scholarship support for UGA's top student scholars.

The announcement was made by Vice President for Development and University Relations Donald Eastman during the October meeting of the University of Georgia Foundation Board of Trustees in Athens.

Ramsey's contributions to the university will thus total approximately $34 million. His total contributions to the Foundation Fellows program alone will be almost $23 million.

Ramsey already held the distinction of being UGA's most generous individual benefactor, with gifts of more than $15 million prior to his death.

"Bernie Ramsey deeply loved the University of Georgia and was personally concerned with the well-being of its students," says President Charles B. Knapp. "He was committed to helping the university provide students with the highest-quality academic preparation to enable them to become outstanding leaders for Georgia and the nation. His investment in future generations of UGA students is a lasting legacy to the vision and devotion of this great friend and alumnus."

Trustee Chairman Daniel P. Amos of Columbus found it appropriate that Ramsey, a former trustee, is responsible for the largest increase ever in the Foundation's endowment.

"Bernie set a standard for supporting this university that is unmatched," said Amos. "His commitment to building a brighter future by enhancing the University of Georgia's education programs and assisting students was inspirational. The foundation will be forever indebted to him for his vision and leadership."

The Foundation Fellows program provides top UGA students with enriched educational opportunities, including small classes, individualized study, interactions with leading faculty and special travel and cultural programs. Foundation Fellowships cover almost all of a student's educational expenses for up to four years.

Ramsey's bequest will raise the total endowment for the Foundation Fellowship program to almost $29 million, comparable to the best undergraduate merit-based scholarship programs in the nation, according to Foundation Fellowship coordinator Alexander Rosenberg.

Ramsey's previous gifts also helped establish three endowed professorships and created a center for the study of private enterprise in the Terry College of Business. His contributions helped fund construction of a student center in the business college, a concert hall in the new Performing Arts Center and the Butts-Mehre Athletic Heritage Hall.