'39 UA GRAD BEQUEATHS FUNDS TO ENDOW CHANCELLOR’S SCHOLARSHIP

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - A 1939 B.S.B.A. graduate of the Sam M. Walton College of Business has left a portion of his estate to the University of Arkansas to benefit the Chancellor’s Scholarship Program.

The James H. Stewart Chancellor’s Scholarship will be available to all eligible students, funded through a $175,000 bequest made in his living trust. Stewart, who had been living in Rogers, died March 22, 2000.

"When it came down to estate planning," said Stewart’s attorney Bill Watkins, "he liked the Chancellor’s Scholarship the best."

UA Chancellor John A. White said, "We are most pleased that James Stewart chose to remember the University of Arkansas in his estate planning. It demonstrates how a bond to this institution can last a lifetime and beyond. By offering Chancellor’s Scholarships to qualified Arkansas high school students, we have a vehicle for keeping talented students in state while providing them a nationally competitive educational opportunity. Mr. Stewart’s gift will help significantly."

Stewart, born in southern Arkansas and schooled in Murfreesboro, Ark., spent his retirement years near the lake with his wife in Rogers. He met his wife, Kathryn Keicher, originally from Springdale, when they were both students at the University. Mrs. Stewart died in 1991.

"He was always fond of the University and liked going to school here," his sister, Bernell Daigle of Rogers, recalls. "That’s why he decided to leave something for them."

While at the University, Stewart enjoyed attending military dances and parties on campus. While in school, he worked at the Boston Store in the shoe department in Fayetteville. His wife was a Razorback cheerleader and a 1937 graduate of the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences. She taught mathematics at the University.

After college, Stewart served in the U.S. Army and held the rank of colonel. He was stationed in Europe during the early 1950s. He then worked at the Pentagon until his retirement in 1972 and then moved to the Rogers area in 1973.

Stewart is described as being a smart man interested in many things. His sister said he was quite a hobbyist and enjoyed such pursuits as gardening, traveling, stone collecting, jewelry making and bee keeping.

In addition to funding a Chancellor’s Scholarship, Stewart left several artifacts obtained during his travels to the University Museum including three pieces of Roman mosaics - thought to be flooring - found near Sinop, Turkey. The Museum plans to use the examples of Roman material culture for illustrating lectures on the ancient Roman occupation of Turkey or on the history of the Middle East.

He became active in the community during his retirement and was a longtime benefactor Northwest Arkansas and also left portions of his estate to various agencies in Rogers.

"They were givers to their community and generous with their family," Daigle said of her brother and sister-in-law.

In fiscal year 1999-2000, the Chancellor’s Scholarship Program received $1,768,004 in private gift support. Of that amount, five gifts were in the form of planned gifts.