University of Arkansas alumnus Bruce Woody and his wife, Rebecca, have donated $1 million to the Land of Opportunity Scholarship endowment at the University of Arkansas, aiming to reduce funding gaps that limit access to education.
With the gift, the couple join the Leaders of Arkansas Founders’ Circle, which consists of a group of university alumni and friends who support the Land of Opportunity Scholarship campaign with a gift of at least $1 million.
Rebecca Woody, who grew up in rural Oklahoma as the daughter of a minister, worked three jobs to attend the University of Oklahoma. Her experience helped shape the couple’s desire to give.
“I grew up in that world,” Rebecca said in a press release from the university. “If I had not worked, I would not have been able to go to college. We wanted to give back in a way that would impact someone coming from the same background.”
Bruce Woody was born in Memphis and attended the U of A. In 1985, he began a two-year internship in Dallas, and in 1987, he returned to Fayetteville to finish the last two years of his bachelor’s degree in the Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design.
During this time, Rebecca worked multiple side jobs to help make ends meet, along with her primary job as the office payroll coordinator at J.B. Hunt of Lowell.
In 1989, Bruce began his career in Dallas and traveled on weekends to northwest Arkansas where Rebecca remained working until she could take maternity leave and move as well. The couple now lives in Texas but maintains strong personal and professional ties to the U of A and the Fay Jones School. Bruce serves as president and CEO of HH Architects in Richardson, Texas, where he has worked since 1990.
The couple has maintained an affection for the Hunt family and took notice when Jane Hunt and Bryan Hunt donated $100 million from for the Land of Opportunity fund.
Bruce is a member of the Fay Jones School Dean’s Circle and serves on the board of directors and financial council for Sunny Glen Children’s Home. He is also a member of the Texas Society of Architects, the American Institute of Architects Dallas Chapter, and the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards.
“Bruce and Rebecca understand both the obstacles that can stand in the way of a degree and the lasting rewards higher education provides to the graduate and those around them,” U of A Chancellor Charles Robinson said in the press release. “We are deeply grateful they are using the success they have experienced as college graduates to extend opportunity to generations of Arkansas students.”
The Land of Opportunity Scholarship was established to improve educational access for students from Arkansas and create a partnership between the university and businesses throughout the state. The three-year campaign began last November. As of Sept. 30, the campaign has raised 68% of its goal in 31% of the time through more than $135 million in pledges and commitments
The press release stated that the scholarship is both a response to the challenges Arkansas students face and a way to leave a lasting impact on the state.
“Arkansas, specifically northwest Arkansas, has seen a lot of growth recently,” Bruce Woody said in the release. “Many areas of the state, particularly lower-income areas, are starting to fall behind in education, and this has caused an adverse impact on the economy of those areas. Chancellor Robinson is doing an incredible job addressing the financial needs of all students across the state. The Land of Opportunity Scholarship is one way to help close that gap.”
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