The Darnall W. Boyd, Jr. Memorial Scholarship
The Darnall W. Boyd, Jr. Memorial Scholarship Endowment at Washington and Lee University was established in 1989 to honor Susan and Donny’s son who died in an accident in 1985. He graduated from Washington and Lee with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics. Originally the scholarship was awarded every fourth year to an outstanding Columbia-area student for four years, tuition only. In 2016, the Boyd Foundation increased the endowment to provide full tuition for four years to an incoming Columbia-area student every year. Subsequently, the commitment was increased again to include room and board in addition to tuition.
The scholarship continues the legacy of Darnall W. Boyd, Jr. and perpetuates W&L’s values by which he lived: honor, civility, integrity, and commitment to community.
The Foundation has funded the Darnall W. Boyd, Jr. Scholarship Fund with $4.74 Million.
Boyd Scholars Program at Clemson University
Prior to his death in 2015, Donny Boyd met with Dean Anand Gramopadhye of Clemson University’s College of Engineering, Computing and Applied Sciences to discuss the shortage of graduates in STEM disciplines.
After Donny’s death, talks continued between the Boyd Foundation and Clemson University. Clemson determined that some of the students initially pursuing STEM careers were underprepared in certain foundational areas, causing frustration with some of them eventually dropping out or changing majors. A program was developed to identify freshman STEM students who might be underprepared and offer them alternative freshman year classes, as well as a summer program, stretching two semesters to three. The program began with the 2019-2020 school year.
The Boyd Foundation provided funding for course development, instructors, and summer tuition, room, and board. Preliminary results indicate the program is helping reduce the STEM dropout rate.
To date the Foundation has given over $2.3 Million to Clemson to support the Boyd Scholars Program.
Sandhills School Scholarship Program
Sandhills School, established in 1975, is an independent, non-profit school serving students in first through twelfth grade with dyslexia and other language-related and learning differences. Sandhills is the only school in the Midlands that is nationally accredited by the Academy of Orton-Gillingham Practitioners and Educators.
Instruction at Sandhills School is intensive, individualized, and multisensory, with a teacher-student ratio of one to three. This level of specialized instruction is costly and, for many, financially prohibitive. Sandhills does not have an endowment and lost government funding for scholarships, so each year it raises funds for need-based scholarships. In 2021, the Boyd Foundation pledged to match funds raised by the School for needs based scholarships dollar-for-dollar, to a maximum of $250,000. Sandhills met the challenge in 2021. The challenge has been renewed each year thereafter and Sandhills continues to meet the challenge.
Through 2025 the Foundation has provided $1.25M of funding in support of the Sandhills scholarship program.
