A Loyal Iowa Stater

If it hadn’t been for her childhood sweetheart it’s doubtful Donna Whitney would ever have been associated with Iowa State University.

But more than two decades after husband Tom Whitney’s death, Whitney has maintained her connections with the university of which she can now say she is an alumna. She received the ISU Alumni Association’s Honorary Alumna Award in this spring for her significant contributions to Iowa State’s welfare, reputation, prestige, and pursuit of excellence.

“I’m thrilled to get this award,” she said. “Everyone at Iowa State has always been so appreciative and made me feel like an alumna and a part of the university long before I got this award.

“But this was always Tom’s university. He was really proud of, and attached to, Iowa State. He always said that without his education he wouldn’t have gotten to where he did in his career.” Tom Whitney was a three-time graduate in electrical and computer engineering. After graduating he became lead engineer on the world’s first-ever electronic calculator, the HP-35, and employee number 15 at Apple, Inc., and eventually executive vice president of engineering. There he played a major role in the development of the Apple II and Macintosh computers.

He was also a loyal Iowa Stater. A longtime supporter of the College of Engineering, Tom Whitney was an ISU Foundation governor and regularly traveled to Ames to attend the meetings. Donna Whitney would join her husband and came to know many governors.

After her husband’s untimely death in 1986, Whitney moved on without Iowa State. She still visited Ames from her Florida home to see old friends from the time she lived in town and worked at Mary Greeley Hospital while Tom was attending Iowa State.

During that time, “I didn’t visit campus,” she said. “That was Tom’s tie.”

Then she got a call out of the blue from then Iowa State President Martin Jischke asking to meet with her. That was the beginning of her reintroduction to Iowa State.

Soon she herself was an ISU Foundation governor and a member of the foundation’s Board of Directors. Now, on her trips back to Ames, Whitney not only visits old friends from town, but old and new friends from the governors. She soon realized that she wasn’t the only non-Iowa State graduate in the group.

“There were a number of people there who weren’t graduates but whom really supported the university because they believed in the institution,” she said.

For the past several years Whitney has remained involved with Iowa State. She continued her husband’s legacy by establishing the Thomas M. Whitney Professorship in Electrical and Computer Engineering. The professorship has supported the department’s strong research program, particularly in the fields of nondestructive evaluation and solar energy research.

Whitney has continued to be a very active and regular supporter of the College of Engineering, including the State Science and Technology Fair of Iowa, the Whitney Engineering Museum in Howe Hall, and the FIRST LEGO League. She regularly visits the department of electrical and computer engineering, ensuring that she is up-to-date on the department’s research activities and progress.