John Colvin ’69, a commercial developer, and his wife Karen have given generously to enhance the future of graduate programs in real estate development at Maryland.

Robert H. Smith School of Business doctoral students, who conduct research and often teach in addition to completing course work, now have new spaces to serve them well: the Dr. and Mrs. William A. Longbrake Ph.D. Suite and the Longbrake Ph.D. program director’s office.

Anthony Ephremides knows firsthand the impact an endowed chair can have in recruiting top faculty. “It provides stability against fluctuations in external funding and offers tremendous discretionary support for things not funded by grants,” says Ephremides, the Cynthia Kim Eminent Professor of Information Technology at the A. James Clark School of Engineering.

For young entrepreneurs, acquiring funding for a first venture is challenging at best, and impossible at worst. But Warren Citrin, co-founder of Solipsys Corp. (now Raytheon Solipsys), has provided help for budding Maryland businesspeople.

Doug Dawson ’77, president of the telecommunications firm CCG Consulting, established a new scholarship to pave the way for a student from the Virgin Islands to attend Maryland.

When Sam Steppel M.S. ’67, Ph.d. ’72 graduated from Maryland with a doctorate in physics, he took with him a lifelong interest in music that was largely inspired by his wife Barbara. Steppel met her his first year as a graduate student; she was a sophomore in the fine arts program and a cellist.

Anik Singal ’05, founder of Affiliate Classroom, established the Hinman CEOs Alumni Fund with a recent gift of $50,000 to allow students greater access to seed money for their business ventures.

Construction began in May on the $30 million John S. and James L. Knight Hall—the future home of the Philip Merrill College of Journalism. The new facility, named for the brothers who founded Knight Newspapers and later the Miami-based Knight Foundation, is scheduled to be completed in late 2009.

Tom Scholl has long been a staunch supporter of the A. James Clark School of Engineering. Partner in the local venture capital firm Novak Biddle and chair of the school’s board of visitors, Scholl joined his wife Susan ’73 in creating the Scholl Family Foundation in 2000.

Inspired by their own and their daughter’s experiences at Maryland, Roger Winston ’76 and his wife Karen Lovell Winston ’75 have given $100,000 to the University Honors Program, the Incentive Awards Program for students at Northwestern High School in Prince George’s County, the Pathways program and the Terrapin Club.

For Rick and Kath Bailey, supporting Maryland athletics is a tradition. Rick’s interaction with the Terps began in 1957, accompanying his grandfather to football games.