Austin Roberts

Col. Austin W. Roberts (ret.) passed away in October 2008. He graduated from Texas A&M University in 1941 and served in World War II and the Korean War. He remained active in the Army Reserve until his retirement in 1971. He was an accredited tax adviser, an ordained deacon, a member of the Scottish Rite Freemasonry and an active Mason and Shriner.

He and his late wife Ruth donated more than 27 scholarships to Texas A&M, including the university’s first endowed nursing scholarship.

Mr. Roberts’s daughter, Dr. Diane Benson, received her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in nursing from TWU.

“My father was definitely committed to supporting nursing education,” said Dr. Benson, professor of nursing at Humboldt State University in Arcata, Calif. “I am delighted he chose TWU as part of this bequest because of my connection to the university.”

The endowment to the TWU Foundation will be used to give fellowships and scholarships to master’s or doctoral level nursing students who will eventually become nursing faculty. More Texas Woman’s University graduate nursing students will receive financial assistance to become nursing faculty thanks to an estate gift from the Austin W. Roberts Charitable Trust.