STORY CONTACT: Laurel Branen, (208) 885-6789, ljbranen@uidaho.edu, or Sandra Evenson, (208) 885-7798, sevenson@uidaho.edu
MEDIA CONTACT: Bill Loftus, (208) 885-7694, bloftus@uidaho.edu

Editors Please Note: A black and white photo of Mary Hall Niccolls is available electronically by contacting Bill Loftus.

MOSCOW, Idaho —— A scholarship reception Oct. 28 for more than 100 University of Idaho students in the Margaret Ritchie School of Family and Consumer Sciences will celebrate the legacy of an $100 scholarship awarded in 1906.

The event also will mark the 35th anniversary of the first Mary Hall Niccolls scholarships. Niccolls, the recipient of that original scholarship, later returned the favor many times over. This year alone, 68 women studying in the UI school enjoyed its benefits a thousand fold.

When she died in 1963, Mary Hall Niccolls left half of her estate, $433,034, to the University of Idaho. The other half went to the University of Illinois, the alma mater of her late husband, Calvin Barnes Niccolls.

In 1964, the UI awarded $12,500, the income from her bequest, to the first 25 recipients of Niccolls Scholarships. In 1999, the growth of the original endowment allowed the university to award scholarships totaling $97,300 to 68 students. The endowment fund grew to nearly $2.4 million by 1998.

In the 35 years since the first awards, 561 women have received scholarships totaling $495,200.

During her time at UI, Mary Hall Walker received a $100 Sara Headington scholarship given to "a young woman more than ordinary ability finishing the freshman or sophomore year."

In her will, Niccolls asked that the scholarship fund in her name distribute the income from her bequest "in remembrance of my student days" to deserving female students in the School of Domestic Science, as the school was then known.

The scholarship reception began last year to recognize the importance of the Niccolls scholarship fund, which provides most of the $120,000 awarded annually by the school, said Laurel Branen, UI associate professor of family and consumer sciences and scholarship committee member.

"We felt it was really important for people to understand where this money came from and we wanted to honor the students," Branen said.

The school’s faculty recognizes the scholarships’ importance, said Sandra Evenson, assistant professor of family and consumer sciences and scholarship committee member. "This is a good tool to recruit new students into our department and encourage them to continue their studies."

"We think it is wonderful that gratitude for the opportunity she was given stayed with her and she didn’t give back $100, she gave what she considered was the value of her education to her," Branen said. Students have begun to emulate her generosity.

Joey Peutz (Pie-tz), who received Niccolls scholarships while earning her bachelor and master’s degrees from the UI school, contributed to the scholarship fund after graduating and going to work.

Like Niccolls, Peutz started her career as a teacher. After teaching home economics for five years, she recently joined the UI Cooperative Extension System as a Canyon County extension educator at Caldwell.

The Niccolls scholarships were important to her education and helped her choose a career, she said.

"It helped me to focus on my studies," Peutz said. As a student, both the money and the recognition provided by her Niccolls scholarships were valuable to her. "When you’re working hard as a student, that support means a lot."

The scholarships provide $1,000 a year for young women with a 3.0 grade point average who are beginning or transfer students in the School of Family and Consumer Sciences and $1,500 a year for continuing students.