David Frey’s vision made GRCC, Grand Rapids a better place
Frey Foundation Scholarship
- Two scholarships awarded annually.
- Awards based on GPA.
- Recipients must attend GRCC full time.
David Frey generously shared his time and resources with GRCC for almost 50 years. Frey, a banking executive and leader of his family’s Frey Foundation, died in June at the age of 81.
“David Frey and the Frey Foundation have touched the lives of GRCC students for decades, making a life-changing college education more accessible for them,” said Erin Van Egmond, executive director of the GRCC Foundation.
“Our college – and our city, as a whole – is a stronger, better place because of his kindness and generosity.”
The Frey Foundation was founded in 1974 – and made its first donation to what was then Grand Rapids Junior College that same year, supporting the newly created preschool program and assisting students who needed child care while they attended classes. The foundation’s support since then includes donations to the Phyllis Fratzke Early Childhood Learning Laboratory and the Alfred P. Smith Music Center, and to the Open Door, GRCC Works and A Broader Vision capital campaigns.
The Frey Foundation was recognized at the 2015 Scholarfest.
David Frey was born in Grand Rapids and earned bachelor’s and Juris Doctor degrees from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. After serving with the Navy during the Vietnam War, he entered the banking industry, working in New York before succeeding his father, Edward Frey, as chairman of Union Bank & Trust.
Alumna Janice Maggini served as founding trustee, foundation board member
Grandma O Scholarship
- Established by the Maggini family in memory of Erma Ostapowicz.
- Awarded to students who have faced adversity and are enrolled part time at GRCC.
Janice Maggini’s connection to GRCC started in the classroom and continued into the board room. Maggini, a founding member of the GRCC board of trustees, died in September 2022 at the age of 85.
“Jan was a wonderful person who, for decades, had a tremendous impact on GRCC and its students,” said President Emeritus Juan Olivarez.
“She was a leader in policy governance to help the college run effectively. She always kept the focus on our students, tirelessly advocating for them, and making sure that all students, credit and noncredit, had access to the same support and benefits.”
Maggini graduated from what was then Grand Rapids Junior College in 1956 and earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees at Michigan State University. She taught in the Wyoming Public Schools, retiring in 1997 as assistant principal at Jackson Park Middle School.
“My passion for education began here in the fall of 1954,” Maggini said of her time as a GRJC student. Her commitment to GRCC was lifelong: She served as a trustee from 1991 to 2011 and was named board chair in 2003. She served on the foundation’s board of directors from 2011 to 2018 and was a trustee-director to the Michigan Community College Association.
She was named GRCC’s Distinguished Alumna in 2011 and received a Salute to Women Award in 2005.
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