At a dinner following this fall’s meeting of the Randolph-Macon Board of Trustees, board members and other colleagues surprised Diane Lowder, the College’s long-serving Vice President for Advancement, with the establishment of a fully endowed scholarship named in her honor. The Ted and Diane Miller Lowder Scholarship honors both her nearly 20 years of service to RMC and the memory of her late husband, Ted, who passed away in 2022.

This September, Lowder stepped away from her full-time role and into a part-time advisory capacity until September 2026, facilitating Dr. Michael E. Hill’s early work with donors, alumni, and friends as he begins as RMC’s 16th president. Across a tenure that began in 2007, Lowder was instrumental in securing more than $245 million in major gifts to the College, including the $125 million Building Extraordinary campaign, which ran from 2008 to 2015 and supported 17 capital improvement projects across campus.

Her passion for philanthropy made the gift a fitting tribute. This new scholarship was supported by funds from Trustees and other friends of the College who worked closely with Lowder during her impactful career.

“Beyond the campaigns and the numbers, Diane’s true legacy is in the people—her Advancement team, our alumni, parents, and friends—those she’s inspired to give and give again of their time and resources,” remarked Alan Rashkind ’69, the former Chair of the RMC Board of Trustees. “Her calm steadiness, strategic brilliance, and genuine care for others have left an indelible mark on this place and on each of us.”