Southeastern Louisiana University Receives $10M Donation

Southeastern Louisiana University receives a $10 million bequest, the largest single donation in its history. SLU spokesperson Mike Rivault says Seth Ryan, a graduate from the Class of 1953, became an anonymous donor 15 years ago. He says Ryan donated much of his estate to the university when he passed away several weeks ago.

“Because his wife was unable to attend university, he wanted to give opportunities to women, and he spelled out what academic disciplines those scholarships would be for,” Rivault said.

Rivault says those scholarships will be primarily for STEM programs, which includes science, technology, engineering and math. Southeastern’s student population is over 60 percent female, but women only account for 15 percent of STEM majors. He says with this generous donation, SLU should be able to award up to 600 scholarships every year.