$100,000 Lee Gift Will Support Family Literacy Scholarships, Public Radio
June 19, 2000
University Park, Pa. -- Promoting family literacy and supporting public radio are the aims of a $100,000 gift to Penn State from David and Joyce Lee of State College.

David Lee is chairman and CEO of Omega Financial Corp., and Joyce Lee is a coordinator for language arts and social studies in the State College Area School District.

The David and Joyce Lee Scholarship in Family Literacy, to be endowed with half the gift, will assist students in Penn State’s College of Education who are pursuing an internship, research project or dissertation in family literacy. Preference will be given to graduate students. Family literacy is a comprehensive program that integrates adult literacy, parenting and early childhood education to improve reading, writing, math, language and thinking skills.

The David and Joyce Lee Programming Production Fund, endowed with the remainder of the gift, will support the production and presentation by WPSU-FM of locally produced music, news and features of particular interest to the people of central Pennsylvania. WPSU-FM is Penn State Public Broadcasting’s public radio station. An affiliate of National Public Radio and Public Radio International, it has transmitters in State College, DuBois, Altoona, Clearfield, Kane and Bradford.

Joyce Lee holds master’s and doctoral degrees in education from Penn State. She completed her undergraduate education at Bucknell University.

David Lee is a graduate of Lycoming College, and is a member of that institution’s board of trustees. In 1997, Penn State honored him as the

Renaissance Fund’s Man of the Year in recognition of his involvement with many community and civic activities. Friends, family and colleagues gave more than $107,000 to endow Renaissance scholarships in his name. Renaissance scholarships support academically talented students who have financial need.

He is currently a volunteer leader in the central Pennsylvania region for Penn State’s Grand Destiny Campaign, which aims to raise $1 billion in private support during the seven-year period ending June 30, 2003.