The Catherine Krussel Memorial Scholarship is established through a gift from Professor John W. Krussel to honor his mother’s legacy. Catherine completed an eighth-grade education and her husband, William, completed sixth grade. Together they raised a family of six children, but it was Catherine who was determined that all of them pursue and complete college degrees. John, the youngest, earned a bachelor’s degree at St. Louis University and spent two years in the Peace Corps in Markala, Mali, West Africa as a high school math teacher. He returned to the United States to complete master’s and doctoral degrees in mathematics at Colorado State University. He has served as Professor of Mathematics at Lewis & Clark for thirty-three years. He has appreciated the community of collaborative scholars and the opportunity to forge lasting relationships with students in mathematics and overseas studies programs. As a first-generation student, John wishes to honor his mother’s legacy by ensuring that future first-generation students will have the opportunity to pursue the aims of all liberal learning: to seek knowledge for its own sake and to prepare for civic leadership.