Don, now a chief scientist in the U.S. Navy, earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Florida, a master’s from MIT in 1963, and a PhD from MIT in 1966, all in electrical engineering. Shellee, a clinical psychologist, is director of field education at the Massachusetts School of Professional Psychology. Their son Gregory ’12, MEng ’13, is now pursuing a PhD in electrical engineering and computer science at MIT. Their son Jeffrey is an attorney and entrepreneur.

Don: “We established a unitrust to support graduate fellowships in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, where I completed graduate school and taught as a faculty member. This gave me valuable insight into the importance of graduate fellowships. The unitrust is a significant part of our investment and retirement strategies, because you can establish an income stream over time for yourself and a beneficiary, and it’s comforting to know that the trust is invested alongside the MIT endowment. We’ve been pleased with the annual payout, which has increased as a result of the endowment’s most recent positive returns. We plan to make additional unitrust contributions as a part of our diversified portfolio. We believe that MIT’s financial management team consistently outperforms other investments that we can access, and we enjoy the peace of mind that comes from being part of a large managed portfolio. Our commitment to MIT is based on our respect for its mission and its many contributions to the country and the world.”

Please consider your own gift to MIT.
For information, contact Barbara Pitts: 617-324-8888; bepitts@mit.edu. Or visit giving.mit.edu.