Fellowship initiative fosters creative environment

Robert Gore says he spent some of the best years of his life at the University. "We had the freedom to explore. There was a free give-and-take of ideas," says Gore, chairman of W.L. Gore & Associates. Six years after receiving his Ph.D. in chemical engineering, Gore invented the material now commonly known as Gore-Tex.

To ensure that students will continue to benefit from this creative environment, Bob and Sally Gore have donated $1 million to IT to create the First-Year Graduate Student Fellowship Initiative for students in chemical engineering and materials science.

The initiative will enhance the department's ability to attract top graduate students by providing competitive first-year fellowships. The Gores hope to preserve the qualities of the department that so inspired Bob as a graduate student.

I want the department to continue to draw highly qualified students who will then blossom in an environment where they have the freedom to experiment under the direction of one of the world's finest faculties," Bob Gore says.