UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — It's been years since Linda Boehme Reilly was a graduate student at Penn State, but that didn't stop the two-time graduate from feeling a wave of emotion when she decided to give back to the University that gave her so much.
Following a career in higher education, Reilly recently made a gift of $200,000 to create the Dr. Linda Boehme Reilly Endowed Graduate Assistantship. This endowment will enable the J. Jeffrey and Ann Marie Fox Graduate School to support graduate students through teaching and research assistantships.
"Support of the Fox Graduate School from our alumni is critical to the continued success of our students and programs,” said Levon Esters, vice provost for graduate education and dean of the Fox Graduate School. “This gift from Dr. Reilly will make an impact on students for years to come, and I could not be more appreciative of her continued support of graduate education at Penn State.”
Reilly earned a master's degree in clothing in textiles in 1966 followed by a doctorate in clothing and textiles in 1970, both from the Fox Graduate School at Penn State and the College of Health and Human Development. Reilly’s husband, Paul, earned an MBA from Penn State’s Smeal College of Business in 1969.
A connection to graduate assistantship experiences and teaching specifically has stayed with Reilly throughout her life. She spent her post-Penn State career as a professor of fashion studies at universities around the country, concluding her career at Montclair State University in 2015.
For Reilly, helping to provide graduate assistantships to students is about giving them broader experiences than only lessons learned in the classroom.
“I want students to have the graduate student experience,” she said. “Being a graduate student really enhances your education. When I was working at universities over the years and hiring faculty, they often had their degree but no assistantship, they had no experience beyond taking courses. Working as an assistant, you learn how to become an academic. You develop courses, learn how to deal with students and learn the whole job.”
“Whenever I heard about a student applying for graduate school, I always encouraged them to pursue a graduate assistantship because I felt it would make their experience much better,” she added.
Though Reilly has had experience at many universities, her time at Penn State stands out for professional and personal reasons. She recalled stories of her time as a student, including being loaned a car from a motor pool so she could drive to and from Penn State Altoona to complete her own graduate assistantship.
“Penn State gave me this experience being a graduate student, and you don’t gain that experience by just taking classes,” she said. “I still know people who I met when I was in graduate school that became very successful over the years. My lifelong friends that I still keep in touch with today are people that I first met during graduate school at Penn State.”
“Penn State gave to me, and they were very helpful and supportive of me, and I want to do the same for future graduate students,” she added.
Donors like Reilly advance the University’s historic land-grant mission to serve and lead. Through philanthropy, alumni and friends are helping students to join the Penn State family and prepare for lifelong success; driving research, outreach and economic development that grow our shared strength and readiness for the future; and increasing the University’s impact for families, patients and communities across the commonwealth and around the world. Learn more by visiting raise.psu.edu.