Kirk and Nancy Pond Establish Access Arkansas Scholarship

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Kirk and Nancy St. John Pond of Cape Elizabeth, Maine, are contributing $50,000 to the College of Engineering at the University of Arkansas to establish the Pond Family Access Arkansas Scholarship in Engineering. The gift will benefit the department of electrical engineering and be matched with an additional $16,667 from the Pat and Willard Walker Charitable Foundation’s Need-Based Scholarship Challenge.

“We sincerely appreciate Kirk and Nancy’s generosity,” said Terry Martin, interim dean of the College of Engineering. “Access Arkansas continues to be an important initiative for the university, and it matches closely with Kirk and Nancy’s personal goals to help improve the graduation rates at the institutions they support. We are very excited about their gift and their vision to help graduate more engineering students.”

Kirk, a graduate of the electrical engineering department, is the retired chairman, chief executive officer and president of Fairchild Semiconductor Corp. Prior to that, he held senior management positions for companies such as Texas Instruments and Timex Corp. and was the chief operating officer for National Semiconductor. From January 2004 through January 2007, he served a three-year term as a director of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. Currently, Kirk serves on the board of directors for WEX Inc. in South Portland, Maine; Brooks Automation Inc. in Chelmsford, Mass. and Sensata Technologies Inc. in Attleboro, Mass. Nancy Pond serves as a trustee of Spring Harbor Hospital in Westbrook, Maine, and on the board of trustees for the University of New England in Biddeford, Maine.

Chris Wyrick, vice chancellor for university advancement, applauded the Ponds for their gift to the Access Arkansas initiative. “The beauty of the Access Arkansas program is that it impacts students who might not otherwise have the opportunity to attend the university. Kirk and Nancy Pond’s gift will benefit students who may have only dreamed of attending the university one day, and – thanks to them – turn that dream into a reality.”

In 1999, Kirk was inducted into the College of Engineering Hall of Fame. He has served on the College of Engineering Dean’s Advisory Council since 2000 and was a member of the Campaign for the 21^st Century College of Engineering Steering Committee. In 2003, he received the Citation of Distinguished Alumni Award from the Arkansas Alumni Association. He and Nancy are also members of the Towers of Old Main.

“We are happy to be part of this transformative initiative and feel it’s a privilege to be able to promote the scholarship and commitment of students,” the couple said. “Together, we’re expanding the advancement opportunities for students in our global community while creating a strong, educated and directed workforce for the future.”

Access Arkansas, a university initiative committed to raising money for need-based scholarship support – particularly for undergraduates – was launched in 2007. In 2009, the Pat and Willard Walker Foundation created a one-third matching gift for every dollar committed starting at $50,000.