Earlham receives 'EPIC' $7.5 million gift

A $7.5 million gift will help provide a new opportunity for Earlham College students that campus officials say is virtually unmatched in American higher education.

All Earlham students will be guaranteed either a paid internship or a research experience with faculty before graduation, starting in the fall. The program will begin this summer by funding 75 research and internship opportunities.

The donation is the largest alumni gift in the college's history and the largest single gift that Earlham has received since Eli Lilly’s “Magnificent Gift” of $25 million in 1973.

The initiative, called The EPIC Advantage, was announced Monday afternoon. It's powered by a leadership gift from Alan and Peg Kral Scantland of Columbus, Ohio, who both graduated from the Richmond liberal arts school in 1974.

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Beginning in the fall, students will be invited to work with their advisers to find internships or collaborative research opportunities that match their talents and aspirations, Earlham President David Dawson said during a news conference.

"This new initiative will deliver what every student at a top liberal arts college needs — the opportunity to put theory into practice, to put critical thinking, analytical and writing skills to good use, and to explore possible career paths before graduation," Dawson said. "Combined with the other features of an Earlham education, The EPIC Advantage is a guaranteed opportunity no other school in the country can offer."

The college will provide financial support to help students complete those experiences. The funded internships and research can take place in Richmond or around the United States or the world. If needed, travel support will be available to get students to and from those opportunities.

Most students are expected to pursue their internship during their junior or senior year.

Dawson said Earlham is committed to providing students a variety of choices and expert advising to help them secure appropriate placements.

"Our goal is to make experiences available that will help you connect the things you are good at with the things you love with the changes that you want to see and make in the world," Dawson said.

Earlham officials say the permanent EPIC Advantage program will serve as a defining educational experience, one that all students can anticipate, and begin planning for, from day one.

The college said it's the only institution in the Midwest to offer such a guarantee for a paid internship or research opportunity, and one of just three that campus officials know of in the United States.

Using his studies in biology and economics at Earlham, Alan Scantland works for a business called CoverMyMeds in Columbus, Ohio. It's called the leader in electronic prior authorization and one of the fastest growing healthcare technology companies in the country.

Scantland said he seeks out liberal arts graduates when making hires.

"I can teach folks about our business and why it works, why it's successful commercially," Scantland said. "It's because liberal arts students know how to critically think and they know how to communicate well."

Both Alan and Peg Scantland say they're grateful for the hands-on learning and travel experiences they had while attending Earlham. Peg taught 3- and 4-year-olds at Stout Meetinghouse, and Alan participated in a deep winter exercise in the frozen Mad River of Ohio, trying to collect fish for a fish behavior study. They also were able to travel while they were students — Peg went to Maine and Alan went to Jamaica, where he counted hermit crabs.

Their love for Earlham continued to the next generation, with their daughter Susan Scantland Littleton graduating in 2005. She now serves on the college's alumni council.

Alan said the gift reflects three beliefs:

• That immersion experiences are crucial, memorable parts of students' lives and that every student should have that opportunity;
• That Earlham's approach to integrating those opportunities into the rest of the student experience is a particularly effective means of learning; and
• That prospective students and their families will come to understand the value of such opportunities and they will choose Earlham to attend.

The Scantlands said they hope their generosity will challenge other alumni and friends to lend their support to Earlham, and especially initiatives related to The EPIC Advantage.

Their donation adds support to the recently created Earlham Plan for Integrative Collaboration (EPIC).

Earlham says its EPIC program links liberal arts to the real world, helping students "connect what keeps you up at night with what gets you up in the morning."

According to Earlham's website, EPIC encourages students to reach across disciplines to hone their skills as a communicator, researcher, planner and thinker, study off campus. complete an internship, lead a club, make a discovery, create something amazing, and connect the dots between what they love and what they want to do with their life — all within an inclusive network of encouragement, challenge and respect.