$250K Creates New Scholarship For UA Engineering Students

by Talk Business & Politics ([email protected]) 167 views 

A Siloam Springs couple has donated $250,000 to the College of Engineering at the University of Arkansas to establish a scholarship that will help first-generation college students earn their degrees.

The gift will establish the Charles R. and Susan D. Zimmerman Scholarship in Engineering. The Zimmermans are both first-generation college students, and Charles Zimmerman graduated from the UA in 1985, earning a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering.

“We want to make sure opportunities exist for future generations of students,” Charles Zimmerman said in a statement. “The focus of our scholarship is on first-generation students and their financial need. Academic standing is considered after those two factors.”

Zimmerman is vice president of international design and construction at Wal-Mart Stores Inc. He has been with the company for nearly 20 years and has almost always been involved in real estate, construction and design. For the last seven years, he has worked on capital expenditures for the company’s facilities on an international level.

Zimmerman also serves on the UA College of Engineering’s Dean’s Advisory Council and is a life member of the Arkansas Alumni Association. He was named a Distinguished Alumnus in the College of Engineering in 2009.

Susan Zimmerman is a teacher in the Siloam Springs School District.