Program celebrates expansion to University of Maryland
Owings Mills, Md. – The Western Golf Association (WGA) officially kicked off BMW Championship week with the UMd Caves Valley Evans Scholars Reception on Monday, Aug. 23, at Caves Valley Golf Club in Owings Mills, Maryland.
The reception celebrated the expansion of the Evans Scholars Program at the University of Maryland, and the collaboration among the Evans Scholars Foundation (ESF), the University of Maryland (UMd) and the Caves Valley Golf Club Foundation. Leaders from the WGA and UMd were in attendance along with elected officials and special guests, including Calvin Butler of the Exelon Corporation, former Howard County Executive Ken Ulman, former UMd Basketball Coach Gary Williams and more.
During the reception, guests heard remarks from WGA Chairman Kevin Buggy, UMd President Darryll J. Pines, Gary Attman of the Caves Valley Golf Club Foundation, and the two newly awarded Evans Scholars who will be attending UMd this fall, Rebecca Lannon and Varada Maulkhan.
Lannon and Maulkhan were among a record 300 young men and women across the country who were awarded an Evans Scholarship this past winter based on their strong caddie records, excellent academics, demonstrated financial need and outstanding character. This fall, there will be a record 1,070 Evans Scholars attending 21 leading universities nationwide.
“Celebrating the future of our Evans Scholars Program in Maryland was the most fitting way to kick off this championship week,” said Buggy. “We are so thankful to have partners like UMd and the Caves Valley Golf Club Foundation as we expand the reach of our Program on the East Coast and send many more deserving young caddies like Rebecca and Varada to college.”
“It is an honor to be part of the recognition and celebration of our collaboration with the Evans Scholars Foundation and the Caves Valley Golf Club Foundation,” said Pines. “A public land-grant institution affords equal opportunity to pursue higher education, and I am grateful for scholarships that create new pathways to the University of Maryland for students in our state."
As part of the partnership, the ESF also purchased a building near campus which will serve as the future home of the Evans Scholars Caves Valley Scholarship House, expected to open in 2024. A unique component of the Evans Scholars Program is the positive community living experience provided to students in the scholarship houses, teaching students valuable life skills in communication, leadership and mentoring, and offering a strong sense of community. Upon renovation and project completion, the building will provide housing for scholarship recipients to live and learn together for the duration of their college career.
The addition of Maryland as a partner university is part of an ongoing expansion plan by the WGA and ESF to grow awareness of the Evans Scholars Program’s mission in the East. The 2021 BMW Championship, a PGA TOUR FedExCup Playoff event run by the WGA, is being played this week at Caves Valley Golf Club from Aug. 26-29. All profits from the BMW Championship benefit the ESF, and since 2007, the tournament has contributed more than $36 million to fund Evans Scholarships.