Alton N. Scott

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The University of Alabama College of Engineering has received an endowment of more than $8 million from the estate of Alton N. Scott. The bequest is the largest gift ever given to the College of Engineering, and the second largest estate gift in the history of the University.

The income distributions from this trust have been earmarked for the “promotion, encouragement and funding of research projects,” and the trustee of the endowment is Regions Bank, headquartered in Birmingham. The endowment totals $8,061,000.

“This generous gift will provide a tremendous boost to the research capabilities of our College of Engineering,” said Dr. J. Barry Mason, UA interim president. “We are delighted that Alton Scott chose to support The University of Alabama by establishing this worthy endowment.”

“Mr. Scott’s investment in the College of Engineering will have a profound impact that will be felt throughout its future,” said Dr. Timothy J. Greene, dean of the UA College of Engineering. “The College will be able to leverage this investment, resulting in a significant increase in our research.”

The endowment was left to the College of Engineering by Alton Noel Scott, of Yellow Pine, a small town in Washington County, Ala., near the Mississippi border. He died on Jan. 20, 2001.

Scott, known to family and friends as “Ikie,” was born on March 19, 1919, the son of C. D. and Cora Knowles Scott of Yellow Pine. He had two brothers, Howard (deceased) and Clarence, who resides in State Line and Hattiesburg, Miss. He graduated from State Line High School and the Gulf Coast Military Academy, and also attended the UA College of Commerce and Business Administration from 1937-1940.

Never married, Scott lived a secluded life in his later years, although he remained a familiar figure in his community, visiting with acquaintances during errands around town. A lifelong family friend remembered him as an avid supporter of UA’s Crimson Tide football team, saying that for many years Scott had season tickets and attended all the games, and his fondness for the University was evident in his favorite apparel. “Ikie’s basic attire was a hat, a short-sleeved white shirt, and usually his University of Alabama red jacket,” he said.

The Scott family’s business interests are centered in land and natural resources, including mineral production, and family members have had a long history of contributing to civic causes. Alton Scott had already been a supporter of UA for many years, establishing the Alton N. Scott/Washington County Alumni Chapter Endowed Scholarship through the UA National Alumni Association, and contributing to the Commerce Executives Society of the business college. His brother, Clarence Scott, who received his UA bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering in 1929 and is a Distinguished Engineering Fellow of the UA College of Engineering, has also been a generous benefactor of the College of Engineering and the University.

Alton Scott had an avid interest in the scientific and engineering aspects of the family’s mineral development, his friend recalls, and he would often review and monitor seismographic data on their land holdings.

“Mr. Scott’s generosity will support engineering and scientific research for years to come, as he wished,” Greene said. “He entrusted his entire estate to our faculty, and we are committed to respecting that trust.”

In 1837, The University of Alabama became the first university in the state to offer engineering classes and was one of the first five in the nation to do so. Today, the College of Engineering has one of the three oldest continuously operating engineering programs in the country, with about 1,900 students and more than 90 faculty.