The late Mary Wyatt was a retired educator, an alumna of Orlean Beeson School of Education, and immediate past chair and member of its Dean’s Advisory Board for many years. While hospitalized for what would be a fatal stroke, Mrs. Wyatt formalized one of her last wishes: to establish the Mary Elizabeth Wyatt Scholarship as an investment in the next generation of Samford students.

Mrs. Wyatt’s relationship with Samford University lives on through her family. Her husband, Gary Wyatt, serves on the Dean’s Advisory Board for Brock School of Business and has served the university as an overseer. Her daughter, Jen, is a proud graduate of the human development and family science program in Orlean Beeson School of Education. Her late son, John, a Samford graduate of 2001, is memorialized through an endowed scholarship. The Mary Elizabeth Wyatt Scholarship is a testament to the Wyatt family’s unwavering support of Samford.

“Mary was an accomplished teacher and administrator who advanced the kingdom of God by marrying moral purpose with focused action,” said Orlean Beeson School of Education Dean Anna McEwan. “This scholarship will allow us to inspire young people to follow her example!”

The scholarship will be awarded to a student starting the junior year who exhibits Christ-centered character, shows leadership potential, exemplifies Samford’s motto, and has earned at least a 3.0 academic average.

Mary Wyatt’s husband sums up her legacy as a true educator who was always looking after the well-being of the family unit.

“She spent many hours working on ideas that would help the students, teachers, and staff to remember ‘it’s all about the students,’” said Gary Wyatt. “Mary thought of the scholarship as helping those persons to continue applying themselves towards the Samford Motto: For God, For Learning, Forever.”