The 2025-26 cohort of Ole Miss Women's Council Scholars benefit from leadership development, life and career mentors, travel and cultural opportunities through the scholarship program. The new Drinkwater Endowment will add opportunities for these scholars. Suzanne Wilkin (second row from top, at left) and Atkins Trout (second row from top, at right) serve as scholar advisers to the students. Photo by Amy Howell/UM Development
Drinkwaters’ $50,000 endowment supports student research, travel opportunities
Believing deeply in the power of leadership development, Ouida and Wayne Drinkwater have established a new endowment that enables the Ole Miss Women’s Council for Philanthropy to help University of Mississippi students broaden their horizons.
Funded with a $50,000 gift, the endowment will provide research, travel and other experiential learning opportunities. The Oxford residents said these experiences can shape students’ worldviews and help them realize their full potential.
“Ole Miss is at a really high point in its history,” Wayne Drinkwater said. “Programs like this help keep us at the top.
“It’s one thing for a student to be able to afford college, but it’s another for them to have the chance to do meaningful things once they arrive,” he said. “Hopefully this will carry them forward.”
Wayne Drinkwater is a retired attorney who earned his bachelor’s degree in 1971 and his Juris Doctor in 1974, both from Ole Miss. Ouida Drinkwater earned a master’s degree in journalism from UM in 1978.
Supporting students with unanticipated expenses tied to leadership, research and travel has become an important priority for Ouida Drinkwater. She hopes the endowment will give students access to the kinds of opportunities she would have liked.
“These are the experiences that build leadership skills and develop the whole person,” she said. “I had help going to college, but I didn’t have the extras: the mentors, the leadership opportunities, the travel, the meetings and the family away from home. Those help students grow.”
The Drinkwaters, members of the council’s Rose Society, were inspired to create the endowment after witnessing the transformative experiences provided to the group’s scholars.
“All of the scholars are very impressive,” Wayne Drinkwater said. “You can see why the Women’s Council selects them. They’re great.”
The Women’s Council has built an endowment of nearly $22 million and awarded scholarships to 205 students. Forty-one scholars are receiving $40,000 scholarships –$10,000 annually for four years – along with dedicated mentorship from council members.
Council chair Roane Grantham said the couple’s generosity will have a direct and lasting impact.
“Their gift enhances the experience that defines our mission: leadership development, meaningful mentorship, enrichment programming, scholar dinners, transformative travel and other learning opportunities beyond campus,” Grantham said. “Support like this helps our scholars flourish into confident leaders and philanthropists.”
For the Drinkwaters, the decision to invest in leadership development reflects a broader belief in the power of philanthropy to shape Mississippi’s future.
“Giving to a university is forward‑looking,” he said. “It’s not just a transaction. Gifts like this help the state grow and give its people the opportunity to grow.”
To support the council’s initiatives and programs, contact Suzanne Helveston, program director, at shelveston@olemiss.edu or 662‑915‑2956.
By Michael Newsom
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