Eddie Loh, Ph.D.

If we could manipulate the space-time continuum to travel to the future, we would find Towson University students still benefiting from a gift by retired physics professor and former department chair, Eddie Loh, Ph.D.

Towson University (TU) has received a $1 million planned gift, the largest gift from a faculty member in the university's history, to fund scholarships for physics students.

Dr. Loh retired from TU in 2010 after more than 40 years teaching. His passion for instruction and scholarly work began early, growing up on the campus of Virginia Tech where his father was a physics professor.

"It offered me the opportunity to be around students at a very early age," Dr. Loh says. He enjoyed it so much that he followed in his father's footsteps, earning his Ph.D. in physics from Johns Hopkins and launching his career in physics education, first as a part-time teacher in a lab and then as a teacher at Towson State College in 1970.

"I enjoyed teaching and was given the freedom to do what I wanted—so I developed courses in physics," he says. "When I started at TU there wasn't a physics department. Enrollment was low but we worked to build a department and undergraduate and graduate programs." Today, Towson University graduates about 20 physics students annually.

Dr. Loh always preferred to work in labs with students. "I started a number of courses with labs connected to them. I enjoyed developing experiments and working one-on-one with students," Dr. Loh says. His passion for teaching was fueled by the hundreds of students who experienced his classes and labs over the years.

His love for teaching and lab research paled in comparison only to the deep respect he had for his students. He knew the value they placed on education, but also understood that with it came deep financial challenges. That, in part, moved him to "give a little bit back" to the students and the department that is like "his family," he says. "Most of the students who come to TU have to work hard to afford it. I've seen some students who had to drop out because of finances. I thought, 'I am going to help them.'"

Dr. Loh started lightening the financial burden for physics students more than three years ago, committing to support physics scholarships. In just the last year, his dedication became even more significant when he decided it was time to explore planned giving options during his retirement. He settled on a $1 million planned gift.

"The Eddie Loh Graduate Scholarship has had a tremendous impact on our Applied Physics master's program. Scholarship recipients have won graduate research awards, joined prominent Ph.D. programs and built rewarding careers in industry and government," said Raj Kolangani, professor of physics and Dr. Loh's former colleague.

Before the pandemic, Dr. Loh returned to campus for the weekly seminar held in the physics department. "I enjoy coming back to campus, meeting students and seeing the faculty every week. They are just really kind people." He even began giving all his textbooks to the physics department, hoping they would become resources for current students—and they have.

Since retiring, Dr. Loh has taken numerous excursions around the world, and counts Vietnam as his favorite destination.

A gift in your estate plan—of any amount—is an easy way to extend your impact at TU and create a legacy of support for our students. Contact Kathleen Hider at (410) 704-6287 or khider@towson.edu to learn more.