Aisin continues scholarship support

SIUC's College of Engineering is again benefiting from the generosity of a corporate neighbor providing scholarships for an internship program.

Continuing partnership — Aisin presented SIUC officials with the first installment of a five-year, $100,000 commitment to support scholarships and internships in the College of Engineering during a ceremony Monday, Nov. 20. On hand for the presentation were (from left): Minoru Takemura, president, Aisin Light Metals; Steve Takahashi, president, Aisin Manufacturing; SIUC Interim Chancellor John M. Dunn; William P. Osborne, dean of the College of Engineering, and Rickey N. McCurry, vice chancellor for institutional advancement and CEO of the SIU Foundation.

Aisin on Nov. 20 presented the College with a $20,000 donation during a ceremony at the college. The donation is the first installment of a $100,000, five-year commitment for the Aisin Scholarship Program.

"We look at SIUC as an excellent resource for future engineers for our company," said Glenn Edwards, department manager for general administration at the company, based in Marion. "We hope the Aisin scholarship program and long -term financial commitment will help continue to improve that resource on a long-term basis."

The company annually provided scholarship funds the past four years. "This commitment allows the college to be able to start five year planning for the funding," Edwards said.

Interim Chancellor John M. Dunn said the University appreciates Aisin's commitment to SIUC and its students.

"Aisin is extremely important to us," Dunn said. "Your investment in what we are doing here and your confidence in our students is enormously important and we appreciate it a great deal."

Rickey N. McCurry, vice chancellor for institutional advancement and CEO of the SIU Foundation, praised Aisin's continuing commitment to SIUC and the College of Engineering.

"We are very grateful to Aisin for this gift," McCurry said. "This commitment of $100,000 demonstrates the ongoing commitment of Aisin to partner with the College of Engineering at SIUC. It is also a testament to the good work of our faculty, staff and students in the College of Engineering, who have worked closely with Aisin over the last few years to develop relationships, provide employees, fill internships and assist in common areas of research and development."

Dean William P. Osborne noted the commitment is the company's latest contribution to the college. Last year, Aisin made several donations, including a $5,000 gift used to install the same model programmable logic computers used in Aisin's factory -- a benefit to the University and its students. The company has also provided scholarships and internship opportunities for students for several years, he said.

"The current $100,000 gift continues this cooperation and will also benefit Aisin, our students, the University, and Southern Illinois," Osborne said. "We are very grateful for their continued support and friendship."

Aisin Manufacturing Illinois, which opened in July 2002, Aisin Light Metals, and Aisin Electronics Illinois are in Marion.

The three Aisin plants in Marion are tier I parts suppliers to Toyota, General Motors and Mitsubishi, and manufacture products including sunroofs, door and lock systems, aluminum bumper reinforcements, and electronic computer units for power products such as power door openers and sunroof components.

Aisin participates in the college's Engineering Advisory Board. In addition, up to 18 SIUC engineering students have worked for the company as interns during the last four years, Edwards said. A majority of those students were hired as manufacturing or quality engineers for the company upon graduation.

- Pete Rosenbery