$1.5 Million Gift From Former UNI Professor Will Benefit Math Education Students

The has received a $1.5 million gift from the estate of Bonnie Litwiller, a former professor of mathematics.

Litwiller retired from UNI as a professor of mathematics in 2000. She passed away at her home in Morton, Ill., on Jan. 27.

The gift, given through the UNI Foundation, will be used to support the Bonnie Litwiller Mathematics Teacher Scholarship for students who demonstrate academic excellence and financial need. Preference will be given to students pursuing a degree in secondary math education.

"We are grateful for Dr. Litwiller's lifelong contributions to and confidence in the programs at the University of Northern Iowa," UNI President Ben Allen said in a press release. "Her gift for scholarships will help provide an outstanding educational experience for more students and will prepare them to meet an important need for mathematics teachers not only in the state of Iowa, but across the nation."

Litwiller was awarded the 2003 Iowa Council of Teachers of Mathematics Lifetime Achievement Award, the 1995 University of Northern Iowa Outstanding Service Award and the 1993 Regents Award for Excellence from the Iowa Board of Regents. She co-authored more than 900 journal articles, published four books and edited 26 books for the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.

"Dr. Litwiller's gift will honor her legacy of national leadership in mathematics education by encouraging gifted students to become mathematics educators, thus bringing a new generation of potential leaders into the profession," Joel Haack, dean of UNI's College of Humanities, Arts and Sciences, said in the press release. "Of course, it will provide an impact on these educators' students as well, so that this gift will reach generations of students."

Her gift is part of UNI's Imagine the Impact campaign. It isn't the only major gift the university has recieved in the last month. In May, Robert Waller, the former dean of the college of business administration and author of The Bridges of Madison County, to UNI.

For more information about the campaign or the UNI Foundation, visit www.uni-foundation.org.