MS Finance students awarded Theodoric C. Bland Jr. Family Scholarship

By Allison Hayes

The MS Finance Program held the inaugural scholarship ceremony for the Theodoric C. Bland Jr. Family Scholarship on Nov. 8. Ted Bland awarded the scholarships to three promising students: Mengyan Cheng ’17, Alyson Miranda ’18 and Shelby Johnson ’19.

The scholarships are funded through a $50,000 endowment from Bland, who has served on the board for the Department of Finance since 1995 and is the longest tenured member of the board. He is also on the Steering Committee for the MS Finance Program. When asked what the thought was behind giving this scholarship, Bland responded, “Both of our children are Aggies and their spouses are Aggies. I have a very strong allegiance to Texas A&M, and Mary Lou and I thought we were fortunate and we wanted to give back. People gave to me to get to where I got, and I think it’s important to give back so that other people can have that opportunity as well.”

When asked what the thought was behind giving this scholarship, Bland responded, “Both of our children are Aggies and their spouses are Aggies. I have a very strong allegiance to Texas A&M, and Mary Lou and I thought we were fortunate and we wanted to give back. People gave to me to get to where I got, and I think it’s important to give back so that other people can have that opportunity as well.”

Bland said he wanted to encourage more women to pursue STEM majors and the area of finance, so he funded the scholarship to help more female students pursue a master’s degree in finance. “I do believe in giving back, and A&M is where I’m going to give back,” he said. “Whether it’s in time or money, I’m going to give back.”