The Walt Disney Company announced late last week that it has endowed the creation of two graduate fellowships at Carnegie Mellon University in honor of Randy Pausch, the late computer-science professor who delivered an inspiring “last lecture” at the university about making dreams come true.
Mr. Pausch died of pancreatic cancer last summer, but in his final year he became a media sensation after his final lecture at the university became a hit on YouTube (and was later turned into a best-selling book). The professor had worked for Disney’s Imagineer group during a sabbatical in 1995 and continued as a consultant for the company after that.
One of the three-year Disney Memorial Pausch Fellowships will go to a computer-science student and the other to a student in the fine arts. Mr. Pausch was known for uniting science and the arts in his teaching and research.
Disney officials also plan to place a medallion commemorating Mr. Pausch at the Disney World amusement park. The medallion will include words from the professor’s last lecture: “Be good at something; it makes you valuable. Have something to bring to the table, because that will make you more welcome.” —Jeffrey R. Young
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