J. Lyle Tatterson Scholarship Fund Honored
A major gift has been received by the Fairmont State Foundation, Inc., through the
generosity of the late J. Lyle Tatterson.
The late J. Lyle Tatterson’s contributions to Fairmont State were recognized with
a special presidential resolution Friday, April 15, during the 28th Annual Academic
Awards Ceremony at FSU. During the event, students were honored for their academic
achievements and were named as scholarship recipients. Awards and scholarships presented
at the banquet were made possible through endowments from benefactors such as the
late J. Lyle Tatterson.
The FS Foundation has been named as a beneficiary of the J. Lyle Tatterson Charitable
Trust, which is administered by Wesbanco. Sixty percent of the annual earnings of
the trust will go to the Foundation to be used as scholarship funds for students attending
Fairmont State who are West Virginia residents and graduates of state high schools.
The fund will be known as the J. Lyle Tatterson Scholarship Fund.
The fourth son in a family of five boys, J. Lyle Tatterson was a 1946 graduate of
East Fairmont High School and a 1951 graduate of Fairmont State College. During his
time at FSC, Tatterson was on the debate team, appeared in Masquers plays, was president
of the TBI Fraternity and was named to Who’s Who Among American College Students.
He did graduate work in history at the University of Iowa. After graduate school,
he worked for the Walnut Hills High School, a private high school in Cincinnati. He
also began a long career around the world (in Spain, Iran, Jamaica, Morocco, Saudi
Arabia, Japan, Germany and Brazil) as a teacher and administrator for various international
schools and educational organizations. He returned to Fairmont in the 1980s.
“Lyle was very dedicated to whatever job he had and was very focused,” said Tom Tatterson
of Martinsburg, W.Va., one of J. Lyle Tatterson’s brothers. “Lyle threw himself into
his work and strove to do the best he could. I’m sure he was a very good teacher.
Any of the schools he taught in would have liked to have had him back. He was committed
to excellence.”
Applicants for either two- or four-year programs are eligible for consideration.
Selection will be based on evidence of sound character, financial need and academic
ability as reflected by a 2.5 grade point average or higher and appropriate test scores.
Scholarship coverage will include full tuition and fees and $1,500 per year for books
and other expenses. The scholarship is renewable for up to three years if the student
has a 2.0 grade point average or higher after the freshman year and a 2.2 grade point
average or higher thereafter and is otherwise in good standing. The number of scholarships
awarded will be determined by the funds available from the trust through WesBanco
Trust and Investment Services.
“J. Lyle Tatterson’s selfless and lifelong commitments to education, philanthropy
and to Fairmont State deeply move and inspire us,” said K. Jean Ahwesh, Vice President
for Institutional Advancement and Executive Director of the Fairmont State Foundation,
Inc.
“As recipients of the J. Lyle Tatterson Trust, we are honored to be guardians of
his legacy, and we embrace his dream that each child receive the opportunity to grow
and advance through the acquisition of knowledge and a quality education. We look
forward to working with his family to continue his life’s work and the fulfillment
of his dream.”
The Fairmont State Foundation, Inc., helps to secure resources for scholarships,
faculty development, cultural programming and other needs. The Fairmont State Foundation
is an independent, non-profit organization formed to assist Fairmont State by accepting
and encouraging gifts and by using them to advance the missions of Fairmont State
University and Fairmont State Community & Technical College. The Foundation is operated
exclusively for charitable and educational purposes.
For more information on gift planning, call (304) 367-4014. To make a gift online,
click here.
