John R. and Wendy L. Kindig Scholarship and Fellowship Program

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[John Kindig] I think scholastically superior students ought to be rewarded with scholarships and other financial help. We just decided we're giving virtually all of our state to charity, and we decided that we would establish it during our lifetime so we could see the benefit.

[Colin Graham] I knew heading into IU that they had a respectable biology and biochemistry program being able to do research and learn about things that I couldn't learn about. And high school has been super cool, and it’s really sort of solidified my ambitions to get into graduate school and do some graduate research. I was a candidate scholar recipient. It’s been very helpful, to say the least. I can be in the classroom and be in the lab instead of working like a part time job trying to make ends meet. Something I’m very grateful for, and it's given me the opportunity to do things and engage with opportunities that I otherwise wouldn't have been able to.

[Wendy Kindig] Being able to see the results of what we're giving and talk to the students, make them see what their challenges are. But I think the amazing thing is they’re all so motivated and bright and thankful, and it's just kind of like that meeting them and seeing where our donations are actually doing good, supporting great students.

[Erica Nadolski] I'm a sixth year PhD student in the biology department. My program is called Genome Cell and Developmental Biology. I received a pre doctoral fellowship from the candidates, which enabled me to take a year off from teaching and devote my kind of full workweek to my dissertation research. Funding from the candidates has meant so much not only in just the kind of capital of having more time to devote to the research that I’m so passionate about, but also having a sense that there are people and alumni in the community who really value what we're doing day to day in the labs here.

[Wendy Kindig] I think that all the students that we've met so far of our recipients, they all seem highly motivated. They may be doing all different things, but they’re all related to science, and they’re all going to do something that's impactful in their lives.

[John Kindig] Just to see deserving students do well, advance their careers, and hopefully make the world a little bit better place.

[Erica Nadolski] If I could say one thing to the Kindig’s right now, I would just say, thank you so much for investing in graduate and undergraduate students at IU. I think that the impact that these fellowships have is probably more than you can even realize.

[Colin Graham] It means a lot. Helps me focus on what I need to focus on and achieve what I want to achieve, just to have that financial assistance. It truly means a lot.

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