Fall/Winter 2007

Burgoon supports Hamilton campus students with scholarships

While touring the Miami University Hamilton Campus with Kathie Burgoon '66, it is hard to miss the sparkle in her eyes. Burgoon, completing her final semester as a senior instructor in the geography department, has witnessed the campus spring up from its humble beginnings, and the pride she feels in that growth and the achievements of her students is unmistakable.

Her commitment is evident both as a proud ambassador of the university and as a genuinely engaged educator who provides donuts and pizza at her final exams. It also is evident in the generosity she has exhibited in establishing six scholarships to benefit students from the Hamilton Campus, a sense of responsibility drawn from her father, John L. Burgoon.

"My father was able to attend The College of Wooster during the Great Depression because of a scholarship," Burgoon said. "Because of that degree he was able to succeed as a banker and put me, my sister, and two of my nephews through school. So, that one scholarship actually yielded five college educations. My hope is that each of my scholarships will have a similar impact."

Burgoon's first $25,000 endowment was named in her father's honor and supports a chemistry or business major on the Hamilton Campus. She also has Burgoons established scholarships in the names of her mother, Elizabeth H. Burgoon, supporting an English or education major, and her uncle, Russell Leedy, supporting a social work or sociology major. Recently, Burgoon agreed to fund three more endowments as part of Miami's Faculty/Staff/Retiree Endowment Program.

"The majority of Hamilton Campus students work at least 20 hours a week and a number have full-time jobs," Burgoon said. "On top of that, many run their households and have to attend PTA and Girl Scout meetings while still trying to be full-time students. The more money we can get for these students, the more opportunities they'll have to succeed."

Burgoon was once dubbed 'a plank' by President Emeritus Phillip Shriver, who used the building reference to describe the first faculty/staff members at the Hamilton Campus. Despite that meaningful status, she lightly considers the events leading her to Miami and eventually the Hamilton Campus as a series of accidents. While she sheepishly admits she chose Miami as a student more because of a romantic interest than her academic pursuits, her student experience was no less profound.

"I loved Miami once I got here," Burgoon said. "It was a combination of the interaction with faculty, great friends, and the overall college experience. I remember going to professors' homes for dinner all the time and really interacting with the faculty. It was a wonderful group of people."

Between her junior and senior year, Burgoon traveled to Europe as part of the Miami University Abroad program. She found herself so fascinated by the lectures of Dr. Howell Lloyd during the trip that she enrolled in her first geography course as a senior. Following graduation, she continued that pursuit by enrolling in graduate school. Two years later, fate and opportunity again intervened in Burgoon's life.

"They opened the Hamilton Campus in 1968, and the department chair approached me and asked if I would come and teach for a year," Burgoon said. "I said 'ok.' The whole thing was a pure accident."

Burgoon finished her master's degree in 1970 but that 'year' on the Hamilton Campus never really ended. Now weeks away from retirement, Burgoon credits her students for the loyalty that has defined her career.

"I love interacting with the students and helping them find their ways," Burgoon said. "If you really believe in something, you have to be willing to step up to the plate and invest your time and money."