Stella M. Schwartz and her husband, the late Robert E. “Bob” Schwartz, believed in providing opportunity to talented and deserving students, especially at The University of Tulsa. The couple supported TU in a number of ways for many years, and in 1990, they created the Walter Eugene Schwartz Memorial Scholarship, which honored the memory of their son. Walter had been an outstanding student at TU, and he had continued his academic pursuits while fighting a courageous battle with cancer. Walter’s friends and extended family members also helped fund this important endowment in his memory. Walter was posthumously awarded a Certificate of Achievement from the College of Engineering and Natural Sciences in May 1989. In 2007, Stella and Robert fortified their son’s namesake scholarship fund and renamed it the Walter Eugene Schwartz Memorial Presidential Scholarship for Mechanical Engineering.
Also in 2007, Mr. and Mrs. Schwartz generously established an additional scholarship fund for outstanding students in mechanical engineering – The Stella and Robert Schwartz Dean’s Scholarship Endowment Fund for Mechanical Engineering.
Bob Schwartz was a mechanical engineer himself, and he was passionate about advancing his profession and mentoring young engineers. Schwartz spent much of his career at the John Zink Company in Tulsa, retiring as senior vice president in 2011 after 44 years of service. He holds 52 patents for inventions on a wide range of combustion and process-related products, including an acoustic flare pilot monitor. He also has authored numerous industry papers and was honored in 1991 as a member of The University of Tulsa’s College of Engineering and Natural Sciences Hall of Fame. Schwartz served on the college’s mechanical engineering advisory board for many years, while his wife was a member of the Women of the Hurricane Club. Mr. and Mrs. Schwartz were also recognized as members of the esteemed Circle Society, the Chapman Legacy Society, and the President’s Council, which rank among TU’s most prestigious donor affinity groups.
Bob Schwartz passed away in May of 2016, but the caring legacy of the Schwartz family will be sustained for generations to come by the deserving engineering students who will benefit from their namesake scholarships.
