Clay ‘79 and Amy Robbins have established The Robbins Family Fund, an endowment that will support student-centered events and activities at Wabash College. The College will begin to develop programming using this fund by early 2015.
In making the announcement, Wabash President Gregory D. Hess said that the Robbins Family Fund would have an impact on generations of students.
“Clay and Amy recognize the important of Wabash College and all that it has given to their family,” said President Hess. “Their philanthropic support will significantly enhance student programming and campus activities and make more enjoyable events that will better unify students and the greater Wabash community.”
The Robbins Family Fund will support a slate of up to 12 new student-focused events per academic year, including cultural and performing arts events, movie nights, speakers, pep rallies, and periodic “Evening of Discourse” events that bring together a cross section of the College community for important conversations on timely topics.
Clay Robbins majored in religion and served as president of the College’s Psi Chapter of Phi Gamma Delta fraternity and the Wabash Glee Club. A Lilly Scholar, he graduated magna cum laude in 1979 and later earned his law degree from Vanderbilt University. After practicing with Baker and Daniels in Indianapolis for a decade, Clay began his career with Lilly Endowment as Vice President for Community Development. He became President of the Endowment in 1994, and in 2012 was elected the Endowment’s President and CEO.
Amy Robbins is a speech-language pathologist, who earned her bachelor’s degree from Hollins University and her master’s degree in audiology and speech science from Purdue. Her practice focuses on children who are deaf and who use cochlear implants.
The Robbins made this significant gift during Wabash’s Challenge of Excellence campaign, which raised $68.1 million. Clay and Amy have three sons who graduated from Wabash during the Challenge of Excellence campaign: Campbell Robbins ’09, Luke Robbins ’11, and Peter Robbins ’12. Clay’s younger brother, Lee ‘83, is also a Lilly scholar and a Wabash graduate. All three Robbins sons received Honor Scholarships.
“For almost 40 years, Clay Robbins has been a significant figure at Wabash College,” added President Hess. “As a student, Clay exhibited outstanding scholarship, leadership, and integrity. As citizens, he and Amy have been extraordinarily generous to their colleges, community, and church. Their contributions to strengthening the state of Indiana and, indeed, the nation are exemplary. Each of their sons carved a unique path through Wabash, and the College was made better by their contributions — as scholars in the classroom, performers in the Glee Club, theater productions and improvisation groups, writers and editors in the school newspaper, and as good citizen leaders.”