At her inauguration, Roseann Runte shared a number of ideas and initiatives for making Old Dominion an even greater university. One personal initiative came as a pleasant surprise to many in the audience - not in the least the staff of the development office - when she announced her intention to contribute $20,000 to the scholarship endowment each year of her presidency.

"We want to increase significantly scholarship support for both graduate and undergraduate students so that our students who work an inordinate number of hours can devote more time to study, to community service and to those extracurricular activities which are part of education," she said.

Runte added, "Think of all that they could discover if they could spend a little more time on their studies and less time on their two jobs!"

Runte hinted that she would welcome others to follow her lead, noting that gifts in any amount to the scholarship fund would be appreciated and put to good use.

The new president's surprise pledge drew a huge round of applause from those seated on Kaufman Mall, and her announcement resonated, in particular, with at least one member of the audience: Tim Miller of Chesapeake.

Already a major donor and the recipient of an honorary doctorate, Miller was so moved by Runte's act of generosity that he went up to her after the ceremony and told her he would direct part of his annual giving to scholarships.

Miller, also a recipient of the university's highest honor for philanthropy, the Batten Award, pledged to contribute $20,000 a year for the next five years to the Honors College scholarship fund.

"Tim Miller's stellar leadership in making this pledge is truly inspiring," said Runte. "He will be remembered by students for years to come because of this generous gift. I am pleased and proud of Dr. Miller's acceptance of this challenge."

The founder and president of ACS Systems and Engineering in Virginia Beach, Miller is a member of the Intercollegiate Foundation board. Among his latest gifts to Old Dominion are $1 million to support the University Village project and the baseball program, and a $3 million planned gift for athletics.

Runte, of course, would like to have many Tim Millers among the university's friends and alumni. She stressed, however, that contributions to the scholarship endowment, whether small or large, do add up. And, she noted, an accumulation of gifts will go a long way to support the students of today and tomorrow.

Alumni who would like to support President Runte's pledge to the scholarship endowment may contact the development office at 757-683-3421 or www.odu.edu/ao/development. Gifts also may be mailed to: Office of Development, Old Dominion University, 129 Koch Hall, Norfolk, Va. 23529.