As a student in Newcomb College Katherine (Kathy) Steinmayer McLean (NC ’53) pursued her dream of majoring in art in the Newcomb Art Department. The daughter of a Tulane geology professor, Reinhard Steinmayer, she studied ceramics under world renowned Newcomb pottery artist, Sadie Irvine. In 2005, in honor of her father, she established the Reinhard A. Steinmayer Endowed Scholarship, which aids students studying earth and environmental sciences. That same year, she created the J. Michael McLean Endowed Scholarship—an award for student-athletes—to recognize her late husband who had been a graduate of Tulane (A&S ‘52) and captain of the football team.
Although now living in Houston, McLean never forgot the lessons she learned in the Newcomb Art Department or the impact it had on her life. Recently, to allow others to have the outstanding education she experienced, she has added to her generosity by establishing the Katherine Steinmayer McLean Visiting Studio Artist Endowed Fund. The gift will support visiting artists who come to Tulane and provide funds for such activities as special topics classes, workshops, lectures, artistic residencies and exhibitions. “There are so many smart and talented young people at Tulane,” says McLean. “I wanted to give them an opportunity to experience artistic experimentation and to meet visiting artists from other areas who will teach them new techniques.”
In addition to making a current-use gift establishing the visiting artist fund, she has also provided a generous bequest in her will for the same purpose. “I just feel that Tulane is a wonderful place, and I know that this gift will really make a difference to students who are following their dreams to study art,” she says. “It makes me so happy to do it.”