As another academic year begins, we are delighted to salute the lighting industry’s leaders of tomorrow.
And that begins with a nod to our past.
For years, Acuity Brands and our employees/sales reps have proudly contributed to the Robert J. Besal Memorial Education Fund. As a VP with our Lithonia Lighting® brand, Bob spent more than 30 years as a great leader and role model. And his inspiration shines on through the fund, which annually honors academically gifted students and encourages them to pursue careers in the lighting industry.
Since it was established in 1983, the Besal Fund has awarded more than $780,000 in academic scholarships to over 300 university students studying illumination or lighting. Many have gone on to highly successful careers that are furthering the growth of our ever-evolving industry.
For the 2017-18 academic year, the Besal Fund – which is administered by the Illuminating Engineering Society – has awarded 13 new scholarships to the following graduate and undergraduate students:
Student Name |
Degree |
University |
Arpan Guha |
Graduate |
University of Nebraska |
Samantha Anderson |
Graduate |
University of Nebraska |
Nick Garaycochea |
Graduate |
University of Nebraska |
Matt Healy |
Graduate |
University of Nebraska |
Simon Diederich |
Graduate |
University of Kansas |
Trevyn Sell |
Undergraduate |
Kansas State University |
Tucker Rayl |
Undergraduate |
University of Kansas |
Riley Johnson |
Undergraduate |
University of Nebraska |
Heather Randolph |
Undergraduate |
Kansas State University |
Whitney Luck |
Undergraduate |
Kansas State University |
Danielle Porter |
Undergraduate |
Kansas State University |
Darci Kern |
Undergraduate |
Kansas State University |
Kaitlyn McConnell |
Undergraduate |
University of Colorado at Boulder |
Riley Johnson, one of the grateful recipients, said that “I could see myself being happy working as a (lighting) designer for the entirety of my career. It’s my goal to become as skilled as possible and be respected throughout the industry as an outstanding engineer and designer.”
Our late friend Bob Besal would surely share in this sentiment.