Indiana State University gets $8M, largest individual gift in school's history

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. — An Indiana State University graduate and his wife have donated $8 million to the western Indiana school's college of technology, making it the largest individual gift in ISU's history.

The donation from Steve Bailey and his wife, Gloria, was announced Friday and will benefit ISU's College of Technology, which will now be named the Bailey College of Engineering and Technology, following approval by ISU's trustees.

The funding will create scholarships, faculty fellowships and a dean’s fund, with a goal of attracting more students and faculty.

“If you want to make a difference, you have to put your money where your heart is,” Steve Bailey said after Friday’s trustees’ meeting, the Tribune-Star reported.

Bailey, who graduated from ISU in 1971 with a degree in automotive technology, went on to a successful five-decade career in the diesel parts and service industry. From 2014 until his retirement in 2019, he served as CEO of DieselUSA Group.

He said the gift will “keep the momentum going in the College of Technology" and make a big difference in ISU's future.

ISU President Deborah Curtis called the couple's $8 million gift “is a game-changer” for the university. “It is life-changing for this institution, and it will absolutely be life-changing for students and their families for many years.”