HOUSTON – The University of Houston received a $5 million donation from the Wayne Duddlesten Foundation, establishing two endowed scholarships for University of Houston C.T. Bauer College of Business students who are studying entrepreneurship and real estate.
Of the total $5 million, $4 million will be dedicated to creating “The Wayne B. Duddlesten, Sr. Endowed Scholarship” in the Cyvia and Melvyn Wolff Center for Entrepreneurship. While the additional $1 million is dedicated to “The Wayne B. Duddlesten, Sr. Endowed Scholarship” for the Real Estate Program.
Recommended Videos
Wayne Duddlesten was a Houstonian and UH alumnus who founded and operated a general contracting firm that developed and managed commercial income producing properties throughout the country, and was listed in Fortune Magazine’s Top 200 U.S. construction firms.
According to a news release about the scholarships, Duddlesten was known as extremely passionate about mentoring future young professionals in real estate and development.
“Wayne championed work ethic and strong character,” Karen Duddlesten, speaking of her late husband in a news release said. “He believed in the power of education to propel individuals to reach their full potential as productive members of society. He would be proud that his legacy will live on through these scholarships for hardworking business students at the University of Houston, especially in programs that are frequently recognized for their excellence.”
The university noted in it’s news release that the Cyvia and Melvyn Wolff Center for Entrepreneurship within Bauer College is consistently ranked among the best undergraduate entrepreneurship programs in the United States, focused on creating entrepreneurs with integrity who can think, lead and connect.
The University of Houston also made note of the Bauer Real Estate Program, stating in the news release that it features practicing real estate professionals who serve as faculty, bringing their expertise to the classroom to teach the fundamentals of real estate principals, finance, development and market analysis.
Bauer College of Business Dean Paul A. Pavlou applauded the Duddlesten Foundation’s vision to support student success.
“Scholarships open access to education be alleviating the financial burden that so many students experience. We are grateful to the Duddlesten Foundation for empowering our students to pursue their studies and achieve their dreams,” said Pavlou.
The first scholarships will be available during the 2022-2023 academic year.