WVU Potomac State College campus
West Virginia University students from Morgan County (W.Va.) will benefit from a significant leadership gift made by a late alumnus to fund two endowed scholarships – one for the main campus in Morgantown and another for Potomac State College.
The Raymond E. Gilhart endowed scholarships will provide undergraduate scholarships for deserving students with financial need. Students majoring in accounting, business, business administration, economics, finance, marketing, management, mathematics, pure sciences or language arts would be eligible.
If no students from Morgan County qualify, students from other Eastern Panhandle counties – including Berkeley, Grant, Hampshire, Hardy, Jefferson, Mineral or Pendleton – will be considered.
Gilhart passed away May 30, 2019, in Montoursville, Pennsylvania. His estate gifts were recently completed.
Gilhart is a native of Great Cacapon, West Virginia, and spent much of his early life in Morgan County. He graduated with an associate of arts degree from Potomac State College in 1948, having studied both journalism and pre-education. He received his bachelor’s degree in English from the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences in 1950 and later worked as an interviewer for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. In his free time, he enjoyed painting and photography.
“We’re sincerely appreciative of Mr. Gilhart and his generous gift to fund scholarships for future students,” WVU Potomac State College President Jennifer Orlikoff said. “He recognized the life-changing impact that education and the WVU system campuses can have on students’ lives.”
Gilhart was a member of the Church Society, a group that honors private support for Potomac State College. He was also a member of the WVU Foundation’s Irving Stewart and Woodburn Circle societies. He was preceded in death by his wife, Olive.
Gilhart’s gift was made through the Foundation, the nonprofit organization that receives and administers private donations on behalf of the University.