Jerry M. Rhoads, who passed away on February 22, 2003, was a member of the College of Engineering Advisory Council and a great supporter of URI Engineering. He had hired a number of URI engineering students, and he was always impressed with them.
As a member of the advisory council, he developed both a knowledge and appreciation for the quality of URI Engineering programs. He was also instrumental in linking URI Engineering to his companies in Rhode Island. He provided project support to the College of Engineering faculty and students through one of his companies, Symettrix Corporation.
Jerry was a graduate of the University of Illinois School of Engineering. He lived in Cumberland for more than 18 years before moving to West Warwick 13 years ago. Mr. Rhoads had owned and operated Emtec Corp., Coventry for more than 10 years, and was the former owner and operator of Comtech Corp. in Warwick.
“In his estate plans he left $1.7 million for student scholarships in the URI College of Engineering. Starting in fall 2004, the Jerry M. and Evelyn L. Rhoads Memorial Endowed Scholarship Fund will fund engineering scholarships to academically qualified, full-time students enrolled in URI engineering graduate or undergraduate programs who demonstrate a genuine financial need. First preference will be given to students who are graduates of Rhode Island high schools and are residents of Rhode Island” said Dean Bahram Nassersharif.