The University of Alabama board of trustees renamed the University Fellows Experience for the program’s founder and former University President Robert E. Witt on Friday.
The program, which is part of the Honors College, accepts an annual cohort of up to 25 incoming students. These students conduct research with faculty members, develop community service projects with partners from Tuscaloosa and the Black Belt, and study for a minor in social innovation and leadership.
The renaming to the Robert E. Witt University Fellows Program comes after a large donation to the program — which will ensure it will continue for the foreseeable future — from the family of UA alum Reta Mudd, who supported the Honors College prior to her death in 2022.
The program held an event on Friday to commemorate the renaming and donation.
Tiffany Sippial, the dean of the Honors College, said this donation will enable the Fellows program, which has existed for 17 years, to plan for the long term.
“We know that students decades from now will continue to be able to be a part of this program,” Sippial said.
Some at the event spoke about Witt’s legacy as president; under Witt, the University acquired the Bryce Hospital property and dramatically expanded its student body. Since his time as president from 2003 to 2012, Witt has also served as chancellor of the University of Alabama System and a professor in the Honors College.
President Stuart Bell said that Witt’s influence on the University “cannot be overstated.”
“As past president, he came here to set forth unprecedented, accelerated growth in all areas of the University,” Dr. Allen Yeilding, chair of the Honors College board of visitors, said.
