Opportunity and Education: The Essentials

Alumnus Dale DeHaan and his wife, Ellen, give to Ferris State University to provide opportunities for an education to as many students as possible because Ferris did so for them. The DeHaans established the Dale and Ellen DeHaan Scholarship Endowment in 2016 and most recently included their endowment in their estate plan.

“There are two things that I think provoke people into a philanthropic attitude. One is a passion for what’s going on with the organization. We feel good about Ferris and the opportunities that we were given by Ferris. The second is the capacity to be able to give,” says Dale. A 1970 Accounting and Marketing graduate, Dale serves as an emeritus director on The Ferris Foundation Board of Directors. Being on the Board piqued Dale’s interest in Ferris; through this service he became more aware of the university and its needs.

After he graduated, Dale went on to get a master’s degree in Education Administration at Michigan State University. He later founded MI Choice Benefits LLC, an employee benefits plan company in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

“Ferris is what created the opportunities for Ellen and me. We didn’t realize it as it was unfolding, but it gave us the opportunity to provide for our family, to travel with our family, to educate our girls. A lot of that goes back to what kind of jobs are made available and how you’re able to perform them with the background and education you have. Our experience with Ferris has been a linchpin piece of that whole puzzle.”

While at Ferris, Dale played trombone in the marching band his freshman year and was a student member of the American Marketing Association. Dale and Ellen lived in married housing before his graduation. The couple then moved to Grand Rapids, and Ellen graduated from Grand Valley State University with a degree in Elementary Education.

“We believe that education in our own family capitalizes our children not only to enjoy life, but to experience life in a more positive way and be able to do for their families what we have been able to do. We are concerned with the amount of debt that young people are having to come out of college with,” says Dale. Education is important to the DeHaans, and they hope their scholarship lessens the burden of debt for students.

Several key administrative and executive leaders at Ferris State impacted their decision to give. “These leaders have also set up their own scholarship, and most are not alumni. They are all so committed to the opportunity that Ferris provides them from working there, they have set up scholarships.” Ellen added, “And caring, caring so much about the students in all areas, in all parts of Ferris.”

“We feel like we have been blessed through the opportunities that Ferris gave us, and we feel wonderful about being in a position to do this. We also feel like we can lighten the load, maybe, for some young people,” says Dale.

When you include a gift to The Ferris Foundation in your estate plan, you help students focus on their studies instead of worrying about the cost of their education. Contact The Ferris Foundation at (231) 591-2365 or FerrisFoundation@ferris.edu to learn more about your options.