Three Donors Contribute $1M Each to Support Engineering
Walter Schmid '50, Toray 
Plastics and an alumni wishing to remain anonymous, demonstrate their commitment to supporting undergraduate and graduate students within the College of Engineering.
The University of Rhode Island’s College of Engineering was the beneficiary of several major philanthropic gifts recently. Three gifts of at least $1 million each were received from two URI alumni and a Rhode Island manufacturing company with strong ties to the University. The generous gifts will specifically support College of Engineering undergraduate and graduate students and faculty.
The donors include Walter Schmid, a 1950 engineering alum, a 1968 alum who wishes to remain anonymous, and Toray Plastics (America), located in North Kingstown, Rhode Island.
Schmid, who after graduation founded his own engineering company, Chemical Design, in Lockport, New York, made his gift of $1 million to fund two separate endowments that bear his name: one for undergraduate students, the other for graduate students in any discipline of engineering. “I am so pleased to be able to provide financial support to students in need who are pursuing an education in engineering at URI. I am hopeful that my gift will truly make a difference to students and will result in their successful graduation from the outstanding program URI offers,” says Schmid.
The anonymous gift of more than $1.1 million was received from a donor who credits a margin of his success to the education he received at URI and, in particular, to the dedication of the engineering faculty, whom he honors with his donation. His gift was used to fund the Robert S. Haas Endowed Professorship in Electrical Engineering, named in honor of the retired electrical engineering professor who taught at URI between 1948 and 1988.
Rick Schloesser, president and CEO of Toray, a wholly owned subsidiary of Toray Industries, Inc., presented his company’s check for $1 million at a recent engineering scholarship breakfast held on campus. The gift will fund an endowment in the company’s name, providing graduate fellowship support, a key priority of the College.
Schloesser comments, “We at Toray have truly enjoyed the benefits of our partnership with URI, which began over 20 years ago. We remain committed to promoting higher learning and excellence in education, believing that it will make all the difference in creating the highly skilled workforce of tomorrow.”
Engineering Dean Ray Wright notes that the College is committed to continuing its strong relationship with Toray, which has been mutually beneficial. He says, “Scores of students each year are afforded the opportunity to work at Toray, earning a stipend while putting their engineering skills to the test. These hands-on work experiences provide a critical edge to our graduates and provide Toray with a pool of talented engineering students working at its facilities.”
The dean adds, “Our ultimate goal is to attract the most talented engineering students and faculty members to our program, and, to do that, we need to have resources. Each of these remarkably generous gifts will make a certain impact on our efforts and our desired outcomes. The bottom line is that the more we can offer both prospective engineering students and faculty members, the more successfully we can compete and the stronger our reputation becomes.”
Pictured (left to right) during recent gift presentation: URI President Dooley, Toray's Schloesser, COE Dean Wright and URI Foundation President Glen Kerkian.