Seattle couple pledges $3 million to build scholarship hall

L to R: Annette Rieger; Roger Rieger; Joe Zanatta, director of scholarship support at KU Endowment; and Ken Stoner, director of student housing at KU, recently viewed a model of the planned scholarship hall and surrounding neighborhood. Photo by Steve Dick, University Relations

For the 50 residents in each of the University of Kansas scholarship halls, cooperative living has led to activities ranging from the elegant to the exuberant. There's the annual Alumnae Tea at Miller Hall, or the tax time IRS party in Sellards. And 30 years ago in Battenfeld, student cooks who ruined dinner were put into the back of a modified hearse, driven to Potter Lake and thrown into the water.

"If the meal was totally inedible, that was the penalty," said former Battenfeld resident and Hiawatha native Roger Rieger. "I had that happen to me three times. I didn't mind the work of cooking, though, because it was fun and a fair exchange for the lower cost of room and board that the scholarship hall provided."

Roger and his wife, Annette, both KU alumni, have pledged $3 million to the Kansas University Endowment Association so that more KU students can experience the fun, family atmosphere and support of "schol-hall" living. The gift from the Seattle couple will fund a new KU scholarship hall for women, to be located on Ohio Street adjacent to other scholarship halls.

Named for Roger's late brother, Dennis, c'72, g'74, the hall will be composed of two wings. It will have a variety of living spaces including suites for four to eight people and a courtyard, dining area, living room, kitchen and recreational room. Plans call for Dennis E. Rieger Hall to open in fall 2005.

"KU's scholarship hall system is unique among American universities because of its affiliation with the university and the emphasis on inexpensive cooperative living and academics," said Chancellor Robert Hemenway. "The scholarship halls continue to thrive because of the generosity of donors such as the Riegers."

Although Dennis did not live in the scholarship halls as a KU student, Roger said his brother, who died of diabetes at age 47, would appreciate having a hall built in his name.

"He was a real Jayhawk, through and through," said Roger, b'67. "I think he would be proud to be associated with a scholarship hall. This gift was a way for us to leave something here that's a lasting memorial to him."

Annette, c'67, s'67, said the couple's gift was a way to give back to KU and help students.

"First of all, we are Jayhawks and our loyalties are with KU," said Annette, who also holds a master's degree in social work from the University of Denver. "We also see from our experiences in life that KU gave us an education that we carried into the world, and this opportunity now gives us a chance to carry it back. If we can see students do well with support, that's what we want to do."

Dennis E. Rieger Hall will be the 11th scholarship hall at KU, which is one of few universities nationwide to have a cooperative housing system on or near campus. Like all residence halls at KU, they receive no state support for operation. Scholarship hall residents pay about $1,400 less per year than students living in residence halls. In exchange, they agree to about six hours a week of household and cooking responsibilities.

Treanor Architects of Lawrence is designing the hall with the advice and input of a University building committee, chaired by KU Housing Director Ken Stoner, and a community advisory committee, which includes representatives from the Oread Neighborhood Association, the Campus Historic Preservation Board and the Lawrence Historic Resource Commission. Both committees include current and former scholarship hall residents.

"The community advisory group has stressed the need for building designs that respect and reinforce the character of the Oread Neighborhood," Stoner said. "The collaborative design process is bringing the University's priorities and those of the community together to decide on the design that best fits everyone's needs."

While this is the Riegers' largest commitment in support of education, it is by no means their first. In 1988 they established the Seattle chapter of the I Have A Dream Foundation, which provided college scholarships and other long-term educational support for 65 inner-city students who were in the sixth grade at the time. In addition, they have provided time and financial resources for a number of other programs supporting the Seattle School District and its students. Roger, who also earned an MBA from the University of Michigan in 1968, is a residential real estate investor and developer. Kansas City native Annette has worked both in child protective services and real estate. The couple has one daughter, Erin.

The Riegers' pledge counts toward the $500 million goal of KU First: Invest in Excellence, the largest fund-raising campaign in KU history. KU Endowment is conducting KU First on behalf of KU through 2004 to raise funds for scholarships, fellowships, professorships, capital projects and program support. KU Endowment is an independent, non-profit organization serving as the official fund-raising and fund-management organization for KU.