Harper College Educational Foundation
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New Scholarship for “Dreamers” Helps
Family Stays Connected to Harper
As Eleanor Roosevelt said, “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” One family who believes this to be true is the Turpins - Shirley, Howard, Robin, Laurie and Carron. With a connection to Harper which dates back to the 1970s, it is not entirely surprising when they announced the formation of the “Shirley L. and Howard A. Turpin Scholarship for Dreamers,” a new endowed scholarship through the Harper College Educational Foundation.
Howard Turpin was an adjunct marketing professor at Harper throughout parts of the 70s and 80s. The Turpins’ three daughters all attended Harper. Robin Turpin graduated from Harper before transferring to Loyola University where she also earned her Ph.D. Laurie Turpin graduated in 1982 before transferring to Georgetown and later received a Master’s Degree from Northwestern. Carron, the oldest of the sisters, was a returning student who received her A.A. from Harper in 1980, before earning her B.M. in music from Elmhurst College and a Master’s Degree in Education from Aurora University.
The sisters’ mother, Shirley Turpin is currently taking art classes at Harper, but previously had graduated from the fashion design program.
It is clear that Harper has been a major part of the family’s personal and professional development, which was part of the motivation for starting the scholarship. As Robin explains, “As a family we wanted to give back to Harper, but more than that, the scholarship allows us to help change people’s lives just as ours were changed by our experiences at Harper. We feel very fortunate to be able to contribute in this way.”
Considering all the different academic areas that the Turpin family has benefited from at Harper, they did not want to limit the scholarship to any one particular area of study. “It was important to award the scholarship to someone with a goal —a dream—for the future, regardless of their age, background or major. it has been a while since the sisters have been students at Harper, they still occasionally visit the campus. “I love the fact that even after years away from Harper, it is still possible to walk through a building and see professors or staff we knew so long ago! It is obvious that the faculty and staff have a commitment to the school that seems to keep them there, dedicated to the students and the college, year after year - even after retirement!”
The same can be said of the Turpin family who remain committed to Harper College.
