The Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science created a new scholarship in honor of a professor killed in a shooting on campus last year.
Chancellor Gene Block announced the Bill Klug Memorial Scholarship Fund in a campus-wide email on the anniversary of June 1 murder-suicide. The scholarship will support undergraduate students in mechanical and aerospace engineering.
William “Bill” Klug, an associate professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering, was killed in June 2016 in his office by a former doctoral student. Block said Klug conducted vital research and prepared his students to be outstanding engineers.
“(Klug) was intellectually curious, caring and patient, and he represented the very best of UCLA,” Block said.
In 2016, students honored Klug by creating a memorial and holding a candlelight vigil. UCLA also established a Klug family fund to support his wife and two children.
Klug is survived by his wife Mary Elise and two children.
Christopher Lynch, the department chair for mechanical and aerospace engineering, said the scholarship will fund engineering students interested in the multidisciplinary research Klug was passionate about. Lynch said the scholarship recipients must demonstrate academic excellence and be active in the UCLA community.
The scholarship was established with donations from the engineering company Arconic and UCLA Chancellor’s Centennial Scholars Match, which raises funds for undergraduate scholarships by matching donor investments.
The scholarship is currently accepting donations on its website.