Legacy
Wallace Coulter was a very private individual. Unlike other giants of American enterprise, little was known, published by, or about him. His story is simply a tapestry of accounts, told by those who knew him. At the start, Sue vowed, “His legacy will endure forever.” Certainly, part of his legacy is the 85 patents that bear his name. Perhaps more importantly, his legacy is the people that he touched, taught and inspired throughout his lifetime and continues to do so through the Foundation and its many programs.
As is often said of Mr. Coulter, “All he ever wanted to do, was serve humanity; and he did.”
There are three academic institutions that had a special connection to Wallace to which the Foundation provided grants:
Westminster College
Mr. Coulter began his secondary education college at Westminster College, a small liberal arts school in Fulton, Missouri. Although he only attended his freshman year, he credited the school with sparking his lifelong love of learning. Wallace Coulter remained a generous alumnus throughout his life. Today, the school is famous for, among other things, the site where Winston Churchill made his famous well-known “iron curtain speech” in 1946.
As a continuation of Mr. Coulter’s generosity to the school, in 2002 the Foundation made a transformational $28,000,000 grant to the school targeted in three specific areas. $18,000,000 was earmarked to expand and rebuild the Wallace H. Coulter Science Center. This project was completed in 2004, and today, this science center is an 80,000 square foot state of the art facility. In addition, this grant also provides $5,000,000 for a matching program for alumni giving which has greatly accelerated alumni participation. Additional funds were also earmarked for under-represented student scholarships. Impressed with the school’s ability to construct the science center under budget and ahead of schedule, as well as running a successful capital campaign that exceeded its goal, in 2004, the Foundation increased its total grant to Westminster to $30,000,000. In 2013, at the celebration of the 100th anniversary of Wallace’s birth, the Foundation presented Westminster College with a $1,000,000 gift.
Georgia Institute of Technology
Recognizing that Mr. Coulter attended Georgia Tech, the Foundation became acquainted with the unique department of biomedical engineering that was a joint program between Georgia Institute of Technology and Emory University in Atlanta. Wallace Coulter attributed his engineering discipline to his time spent at Georgia Tech. It soon became evident that this program was worthy of funding based on the close collaboration between the engineers at Georgia Tech and the clinicians at Emory. In 2001, the Foundation made a $25,000,000 landmark grant to the program. In recognition of this grant, the combined department is now known as the Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering at Georgia Tech and Emory.
Included within this grant are both endowment and operating funds to purchase laboratory equipment and fund department chairs. In addition, this grant contained a unique $8,000,000 endowment to provide ongoing funding for translational research. Each year, co-investigators comprised of engineering faculty from Georgia Tech and medical staff from Emory apply for annual grants to fund research that may ultimately lead to improvements in patient care. This program was the template for the Foundation’s Translational Research Partnership Program that began in earnest in 2006. In total, the Foundation provided Georgia Tech with grants totaling $34.4MM.
Clarkson University
For many years, Wallace Coulter was involved with Clarkson University in Potsdam, New York, a center of excellence in particle technology. Always impressed with this small school’s ability to provide a first-class engineering education, Mr. Coulter served on its board of trustees from 1983 to 1989.
Recognizing Mr. Coulter’s interest in the school, in 2002, the Foundation made a $31MM grant to Clarkson’s School of Engineering renaming it the Wallace H. Coulter School of Engineering. This grant allowed the university to further enhance its core areas such as colloidal science, multidisciplinary project learning and rehabilitative engineering. In addition, the grant provides an endowment to provide scholarships for underrepresented students.
Here are the preeminent professional awards named in honor of Mr. Coulter.
Wallace H. Coulter Award
The oldest honorific award, and the only one personally approved by Wallace himself, is presented each year by the International Clinical Cytometry Society (ICCS) recognizing recipients for lifetime contributions to the science, education, and practice of clinical cytometry.
Wallace H. Coulter Award for Lifetime Achievement in Hematology
The most prestigious award bestowed by the American Society of Hematology (ASH), “recognizes an individual who has demonstrated a lasting commitment to the field of hematology through outstanding contributions to education, research, and practice.”
Wallace H. Coulter Lectureship Award
The American Association for Clinical Chemistry (AACC) commemorates Wallace’s outstanding contributions to diagnostics by renaming its most prestigious lecture (the national lectureship) in his memory.