Prof Hopes Donations Inspire Further Giving

University of Texas at Dallas faculty and students will benefit from a professor’s generosity. 

UT Dallas Behavioral and Brain Sciences Professor Aage Moller and his wife, Margareta, are giving the University two separate gifts to endow a new professorship and a new scholarship.   

The first, a $100,000 gift, will fund the Aage and Margareta Moller Endowed Professorship.  It will be used to support the research and scholarly activities of a tenured faculty member in the School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences. 

Dr. Alice O’Toole has been selected to serve as the first Aage and Margareta Moller Endowed Professor.  Her current research compares human performance on face-recognition tests to face-recognition algorithms and other biometrics. 

“Professor Moller has been an intellectual and personal inspiration to his many colleagues at UT Dallas, around the U.S. and abroad.  I am very grateful for the opportunity to serve as the first Aage and Margareta Moller Endowed Professor,” said O’Toole.

In addition to the funding for the new professorship, the Mollers are also giving $10,000 to create the Aage and Margareta Moller Endowed Scholarship.  Proceeds from this scholarship will be awarded competitively and on the basis of financial aid, with preference given to U.S. military veterans.

The endowment is actually the second scholarship to be sponsored by the Mollers.  For many years, they have also given annually to support a scholarship that is open to any UT Dallas student who served on active duty in the war in Iraq or Afghanistan. 

“Those who have served the country deserve the opportunity to get a good education,” said Moller.  “My wife and I hope to help military veterans get an education that will give them a bright future.” 

Students interested in applying for either of the Mollers’ scholarships should visit the UT Dallas financial aid Web site for more information.  The fall semester application deadline for both scholarships is March 31.

The Mollers hope their donations, to fund both the professorship and the scholarships, will inspire others to contribute to the University.