UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — More than 60 years have passed since Suzy Williams got the better of Jim Broadhurst when they first teed off together on the Penn State fairway in 1963. Little did Jim know that Suzy had a 3 handicap and was captain of the golf club. In the decades since they married, the couple built a family that stretches across three generations and transformed Eat’n Park from a carhop drive-in into a food service company with more than 8,000 employees. Through it all, what hasn’t changed is their abiding love for Penn State and the sport that brought them together.
Now, the Broadhursts are deepening their philanthropic legacy at Penn State by stepping forward with $275,000 in endowed support for the Penn State Golf Teaching and Research Center (GTRC) and the Professional Golf Management (PGM) program.
The Golf Teaching and Research Endowment will channel resources to research projects, technology enhancements, curriculum development, conference travel and student internships. The PGM Scholarship will be awarded annually to full-time undergraduate students enrolled in the PGM option in the Department of Recreation, Park and Tourism Management in the College of Health and Human Development.
“For us, Penn State wasn’t just a springboard into a career,” said Jim Broadhurst. “It gave us a first-rate education, lifelong friends and a community that’s always been there for us. Suzy and I feel proud and very lucky that we can pay it forward to future generations of Penn Staters, and it’s especially meaningful that we can do so for students who want to pursue a career in the golf management industry.”
In recognition of their giving, the GTRC will be named the Suzy and Jim Broadhurst Golf Teaching and Research Center.
“Suzy and Jim have been philanthropic champions for advancing student success at every level of the University,” said Craig J. Newschaffer, Raymond E. and Erin Stuart Schultz Dean of the College of Health and Human Development. “Deepening their love for golf here at Penn State so many years ago changed their lives for the better, and now, their extraordinary generosity will mean that future generations of PGM undergraduates can translate their passion for golf into lifelong, fulfilling careers. They truly embody the best of the ‘We Are’ spirit.”
The GTRC opened its doors in November 2009. The launch of the indoor facility meant that golf learning could proceed year-round — no longer subject to the vagaries of Pennsylvania winters — and led to the creation of a popular online course on the biomechanics of golf.
“When I first toured the center some years ago, I was so impressed by the quality of the facilities,” said Suzy Broadhurst. “This was sophisticated digital technology being operated by knowledgeable faculty and staff who cared deeply about students, and from that point onward I knew that this was an area we would be proud to support.”
The center underwent an extensive upgrade in 2017, and today the facility continues to enable collaborative research and biomechanical training through innovative technologies, including its nine-camera, three-dimensional optical motion capture system, ball flight monitors, on-course simulation and club fitting and alterations.
“Programming resources are so vital to all we do at the center,” said Eric Handley, director of the GTRC and assistant teaching professor. “This fund will drive forward efforts to upgrade our curriculum and immerse students in the fast-paced, ever-evolving world of professional golf management, where understanding emerging technologies and taking advantage of cross-departmental collaborations are so essential.”
The Broadhursts structured their giving so that GTRC program funds would be complemented by scholarship support, prioritizing the need for opportunities to remain affordable and accessible regardless of income status.
“The PGM Scholarship will empower our program to recruit and retain students of the highest caliber at a time when we’re seeing increased competition from peer institutions,” said G. Burch Wilkes, associate teaching professor and director of the PGA Golf Management program. “Reducing the financial burden on students ensures that undergraduates can focus on making the most of our state-of-the-art training facilities and high-quality instruction.”
James S. Broadhurst graduated from Penn State with a bachelor's degree in economics in 1965 and began his career at Pittsburgh National Bank (PNC), where he rose to the rank of assistant vice president. In 1973, he joined Eat'n Park Hospitality Group, becoming president in 1975 and chairman and CEO in 1984. Under his leadership, the chain evolved from a small carhop operation into full-service family restaurants and contract dining provider. He stepped down as CEO in 2008 and remains chair of the board.
Broadhurst has devoted himself to nonprofit and community-oriented service. He served on the Board of Directors of the Allegheny Conference on Community Development and as chairman of the board of directors of Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh and the United Way of Allegheny County. He also sat on the board of directors — including 5 years as chairman — of the Pittsburgh Foundation between 1995 and 2005.
But it’s at Penn State that Broadhurst has directed his most sustained volunteerism and service. He earned the Alumni Fellow Award from the College of Health and Human Development in 1994, he was named a Distinguished Alumnus of Penn State in 1997, and he was honored as the Hospitality Executive of the Year in 2005. He also sat on the steering committee of the Grand Destiny campaign from 1996 until 2003 and ascended to chair for its final two years. His service culminated in his election to the Penn State Board of Trustees in 1998, a seat he held, including a two-year stint as chair, until 2014.
Suzanne W. Broadhurst was a member of the Delta Gamma sorority at Penn State and earned her bachelor’s degree in elementary and kindergarten education in 1966. She was hired as a teacher in the Baldwin Whitehall school district, and she emerged as one of the top amateur golfers in western Pennsylvania. In 1999 she became the first woman to be inducted into the Mid Mon Valley All Sports Hall of Fame.
Suzy Broadhurst spent 17 years as director of corporate giving for the Eat‘n Park Hospitality Group and is a member of the board of directors. She also served on the board of trustees of the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust and the Phipps Conservatory, and as trustee and vice chair of the University of Pittsburgh. In addition, Suzy served on the board and, for seventeen months, as interim president of the Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh. She was also a founding member of the United Way of Southwestern Pennsylvania’s Women’s Leadership Council.
Together, the Broadhursts have worked to assist vulnerable members of their communities. During the COVID-19 pandemic, they partnered with PNC and the United Way in Pittsburgh to prepare and distribute food to children and facing nutrition insecurity in economically challenged areas of the region, ultimately distributing more than one million meals. They also earned recognition in 2017 for their contributions to reducing suburban poverty by the South Hill Interfaith Movement.
The couple’s three sons — Jeffrey, Brooks and Mark — each earned degrees in hospitality-related fields, and Brooks followed his parents’ footsteps to Penn State, graduating from the College of Health and Human Development in 1994. All three went on to executive leadership roles in the dining industry, including top posts at Eat’n Park Hospitality Group and Parkhurst Dining.
With their latest gift to the GTRC and the PGM program, the Broadhursts are building on an already robust legacy of giving. Their giving has centered on scholarships and programming funds in the College of the Liberal Arts, the College of Education and in the College of Health and Human Development. Their other philanthropic commitments include gifts to the Above and Beyond Fund for Intercollegiate Athletics, the Levi Lamb Fund in Athletics, Penn State Children's Hospital Building Campaign at Penn State Hershey Medical Center, the School of Theatre Scholarship Fund, the Sustainable Student Farm Program, THON, WPSU, the University Arboretum and support for the construction of the Mateer Building. They became members of the Atherton Society in 2012.
With the record-breaking success of “A Greater Penn State for 21st Century Excellence,” which raised $2.2 billion from 2016 to 2022, philanthropy is helping to sustain the University’s tradition of education, research and service to communities across the Commonwealth and around the globe. Scholarships enable our institution to open doors and welcome students from every background, support for transformative experiences allows our students and faculty to fulfill their vast potential for leadership, and gifts toward discovery and excellence help us to serve and impact the world we share. To learn more about the impact of giving and the continuing need for support, please visit raise.psu.edu.