Gator Pays Forward His Scholarship

Clearwater area retiree Bill Alcorn (BSBA '71) says he was set on attending the University of Florida in junior high. There was just one problem.

"No one in my family had ever been to college," Alcorn says. "My father was a bread man and my mother was an office employee. They didn't make that much money, and I really couldn't afford to go to college. So I worked, applied for a federal student loan and earned a much-needed, four-year scholarship. I had to have a scholarship in order to go."

Now 68 years old, Alcorn says it was that UF scholarship, funded by fellow Pinellas County resident Metta Heathcote, that made his business degree in accounting possible. In fact, since creating her UF scholarship in 1966, Heathcote's generosity has eased the financial burdens of about 100 UF students per year. That's 5,000 students and counting, since scholarship endowments last forever.

"Metta Heathcote. I'll never forget her name," Alcorn says. "I had her scholarship all the way through. I promised myself that if I ever became successful enough, I would fund a scholarship, too."

In 2003, that's just what Alcorn did. A JC Penney executive who worked his way up from accountant in 1971 to controller and senior vice president at his retirement in 2008, Alcorn started out by funding scholarships in the Warrington College of Business Administration. However, after attending a UF event where he met some Machen Florida Opportunity Scholar recipients, he decided to support that program, too, through a gift in his will.

Opportunity Scholars are the first in their families to attend college. While the program grants full scholarships to students whose parents earn $40,000 or less, the average income for a scholar's family is around $18,000 per year — well below the poverty level.

Alcorn says when he and his wife, Patti, were writing their wills, they thought long and hard about who would benefit most from their life's treasures.

"We've given cash to the program before, but when we looked at what we want to fund with whatever is in our estate when we die, and what we hope will continue helping people in the future, we have just a few organizations in there. MFOS is one of them," he says.

Aside from their scholarships, Alcorn also endowed an annual lecture series in the College of Nursing and funded high-tech medical teaching equipment in the College of Veterinary Medicine. The couple say they are happy that their efforts will help change lives for bright and deserving UF students, and particularly Machen Opportunity Scholars.

"I've met quite a few scholars," Alcorn says. "They are just like I was. How could I not support a program that was for people just like me? I became successful in large part because of my education at UF. That's an opportunity I'd like to pass on to them."

Invest in the Leaders of Tomorrow
If UF has helped you become who you are today, and you want to help future generations benefit from that same experience, contact UF's Office of Estate & Gift Planning at 352-392-5512, toll free at 866-317-4143 or giftplanning@uff.ufl.edu to learn how you can help more students pursue their dreams at UF.