Lee (Bender) Coleman ’81 and Keith W. Coleman ‘81 have established the Lee (Bender) Coleman ’81 and Keith W. Coleman ’81 Endowed Chemical Engineering Fellowship. This endowment will be used to provide one or more fellowships to full-time students pursuing a graduate degree in chemical engineering and working in safety-related areas in the College of Engineering at Texas A&M University.
The Colemans have also established the Lee (Bender) Coleman ’81 and Keith W. Coleman ’81 Dean’s Education Scholars Award in the Texas A&M College of Education that will support first-generation students.
Keith and Lee met on campus at Texas A&M on a blind date set up by Lee’s roommate. At the time, Lee was studying finance and accounting and Keith was en route to becoming a chemical engineer. Lee came to Texas A&M at the encouragement of her parents, who were not Aggies. Keith grew up in El Paso and chose A&M, without ever visiting the campus, because it was the best engineering school around. Keith younger sister and brother and his wife also graduated from A&M.
After graduation, Lee and Keith were married and went to work for Chevron. After staying home a few years to raise their four children, Lee went back to school to become a kindergarten teacher. It was there that the Colemans’ hearts were first touched by the hardships young graduates face.
“I was able to see up close that these young people, my classmates, were really struggling,” Lee said. “It’s a high calling, choosing to teach young people, and for many of the education students I met, they worked very hard just to get by.”
Meanwhile, Keith’s career took him to downstream refining within Chevron and he became passionate about process safety. During this, his time at Texas A&M continued to play a role in his life.
“Texas A&M’s six core values of loyalty, integrity, excellence, leadership, respect and selfless service influenced me throughout my career,” Keith said. “From my first day at Chevron until I retired in 2015, I could see how those values instilled in me from my days at A&M inspired and guided me in my life. They made me a better person.”
In recent years, the Colemans reflected on their time at Texas A&M and their careers. The idea of giving to Texas A&M came up in a conversation. “Somebody created the Texas A&M that I knew when I was there,” Keith said. “The traditions, the values and the technology that were available to us didn’t appear out of thin air. Someone contributed. I began to think that it was my obligation to do the same and give back to the place that gave me so much.”
Without much discussion, the Colemans decided to give back, not just to one program at Texas A&M, but two. Each gift would reflect the passion of the Colemans’ lives. The dean’s education scholars award will benefit young, aspiring teachers. The endowed chemical engineering fellowship will help graduate students pursuing a process safety focus in their chemical engineering careers.
“We’ve given gifts to other organizations like ministries and charities before. We’re giving to Texas A&M because like those other causes, we value their mission and believe that Aggies will continue to make a profound positive impact on the world. Texas A&M changed our lives. I cannot thank the people who steered me here enough. This school instilled values in me that I try to follow daily. They are the values we tried to teach our children,” Lee said.
Texas A&M College of Engineering
The College of Engineering is one of the leading engineering programs in the United States, ranking first in undergraduate enrollment and ninth in graduate enrollment. Fellowships encourage collaboration between the faculty, students and industry mentors while allowing graduate students to further their education and thus having a greater impact on the industry. If you are interested in supporting the College of Engineering or would like more information on how you can give, please contact Haley Jennings, director of development.