Edward Keller of Beaumont, TX, a 2019 Indiana University of Pennsylvania Distinguished Alumni Award recipient, has been honored by the Beaumont Foundation of America with an additional $60,000 gift for a scholarship at IUP named in Keller’s honor.
In 2015, the Beaumont Foundation of America established the C. Edward Keller Scholarship for Criminology and Criminal Justice at IUP in Keller’s honor. To date, IUP has received more than $500,000 in scholarship funding from the Beaumont Foundation. Since the creation of the scholarship, $375,000 has been awarded to deserving students, with another $52,000 to be awarded this academic year. The C. Edward Keller Scholarship for Criminology and Criminal Justice is an endowed scholarship, meaning scholarships will be available for many, many more years.
From left, C. Edward Keller with the 2024 scholarship recipients: Haylee Svidron, Amanda Gwinn, Madison Shafron, Kylie Nease, Samantha Bainey, and Freeman Wilson.
The C. Edward Keller Endowed Scholarship in Criminology and Criminal Justice provides support for tuition, fees, and books to full-time criminology majors who demonstrate academic excellence and have standardized test scores predicting high academic success at IUP. Preference is given to first-generation students and those with financial need. The recipients of the scholarship are selected by the appropriate scholarship committee within the Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice, in consultation with the honoree.
The Beaumont Foundation of America, based in Texas, is dedicated to a broad range of charitable activities across the United States, seeking grant-making opportunities that enrich lives and enhance the futures of less fortunate children and youth, families, and the elderly.
A first-generation college student from Waynesboro, Keller graduated from IUP in 1974 with a degree in criminology. While a student, Keller worked in campus security and interacted with Pennsylvania State Police troopers who encouraged him to consider a career in law enforcement. Keller credits the IUP Criminology program for aiding his career as a state trooper.
Keller spent 28 years in law enforcement, beginning his career with the Maryland State Police and retiring from the Federal Bureau of Investigation as an agent. During his tenure, he received numerous honors and awards for outstanding investigative work and supervisory leadership skills. He also successfully completed executive management training at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School.
After retiring in 2003, Keller has continued to cement his legacy of service as the president and CEO of the Beaumont Foundation. The organization’s mission at that time was to provide computer equipment to schools, churches, and nonprofit organizations such as the Salvation Army and the Boys and Girls Club of America, thereby creating more opportunities for the underprivileged.
In 2006, the Beaumont Foundation began supporting foster care homes and food banks in Texas. The Foundation provides clothing stipends to foster care children, scholarships for both teachers and students, and grants in support of health care and social services programs. Since 2002, more than $183 million in grants and scholarships have been awarded.
The Distinguished Alumni Award is the university’s highest honor, recognizing alumni for pinnacle career achievement. Fewer than 360 alumni out of the university’s 150,000 alumni have been selected for this recognition.
The 2024 C. Edward Keller Scholarship for Criminology and Criminal Justice recipients are:
- Samantha Bainey from Philipsburg, a criminology and psychology double major and magna cum laude May IUP graduate. She is the daughter of Jeff and Connie Bainey and a 2020 graduate of Philipsburg-Osceola Area Senior High School. At IUP, she was a member of Phi Eta Sigma honor society and the National Society of Leadership and Success honor society and volunteered for Hopeful Hearts.
- Amanda Gwinn of James Creek, who will be a senior criminology major at IUP in fall 2024. She is the daughter of Heather and Allen Gwinn and a 2021 Huntingdon Area High School graduate. She is a dean’s list student, a member of the track and field team, the club soccer team, and Alpha Phi Sigma National Criminal Justice Honor Society.
- Kylie Nease of Greensburg, who will be a second-year criminology major at IUP in fall 2024. She is the daughter of Andrea Nease and a 2023 graduate of Hempfield Area High School.
- Madison Shafron from Latrobe, who graduated with a perfect 4.0 GPA from IUP in May and will begin studies in the criminology master’s program at IUP in fall 2024. She is the daughter of Tom and Connie Shafron and a 2020 graduate of Greater Latrobe High School. As an undergraduate, she was a member of Phi Eta Sigma honor society, Alpha Phi Sigma National Criminal Justice Honor Society, the National Society of Leadership and Success, and Phi Kappa Phi honor society.
- Haylee Svidron from Monroeville, who will begin her studies at IUP in criminology in fall 2024. She is the daughter of Jeff Svidron and Lisa Stroup and a 2024 Gateway High School graduate.
- Freeman Wilson of Harrisburg, who will be a second-year criminology major at IUP in fall 2024. A member of the IUP Cook Honors College, he is the son of Annmarie Wilson and a 2022 graduate of Susquehanna Township High School. He is an all-academic Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference athlete on the football team and a member of the Sustainability Club and the Plant Patrol Club.