Estate gift creates conservation scholarship endowment at UW-Stevens Point
For the City Times
STEVENS POINT – A Chippewa Falls couple’s passion for conservation and education has inspired an estate gift of $695,000 to create a scholarship endowment for students in the College of Natural Resources at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.
The Michael and Jessina Dineen Conservation Scholarship endowment through the UWSP Foundation is expected to provide over $25,000 in scholarships each year for UW-Stevens Point students entering their senior year. The students must be from the Chippewa Falls region and majoring in a natural resource-related field.
The scholarship honors the late Michael and Jessina Dineen, who grew up in Wisconsin’s Chippewa Valley. They are remembered for their love and appreciation of the outdoors, strong conservation ethic, and enjoyment of sharing it with others. Michael died in a motorcycle accident in 2001. Jessina “Jess” was the long-time band director at Chippewa Falls Middle School, who died in 2015.
The Dineens were active volunteers in hunter education and conservation leadership in the Chippewa Rod and Gun Club and the Chippewa Valley Outdoor Resource Alliance. This involvement led Jessina to create a scholarship program from their estate. A similar gift from the Dineen estate has also created a scholarship endowment at UW-River Falls.