A life well-lived: Alumnus and husband establish scholarship endowment to benefit business students

Igniting lifelong curiosity—that is what Western Michigan University did for Kelly Mankin, B.B.A.’82, retired senior vice president, TD Auto Finance.

Mankin, who was a first-generation student, was the youngest of five children. Growing up in Allegan, Michigan, he planned on working at a local factory when he finished high school. But that factory closed during his high school years, which left Mankin without a plan for his future.

He turned to his older brother Dennis, who was the first in their family to attend college, and he encouraged Mankin to consider higher education. A teacher’s aide at his school recommended WMU to him, and Mankin began to research if he had the grades to be accepted—and whether he could fund his education.

“I stumbled into the college experience and attending WMU, and it was the best ‘stumble’ I ever had in my life,” he notes. “I realize that Western took a chance on me, giving me the opportunity to learn and develop socially. I could not be more grateful for my WMU experience. It changed everything for me.”

Now, Mankin is giving back to the Haworth College of Business so that students can immerse themselves in the same life-changing courses and co-curricular involvements he did. In 2022, Mankin, and his husband Michael, worked with WMU Advancement to create an estate gift that will establish the Kelly Mankin and Michael Tonda Endowed Business Scholarship, which will benefit future generations of Business Broncos.

“My parents did not have a lot of means financially,” Mankin says. “We always had food and clothes, but there were few extras and no option for them to help me with college. The way I funded my education was through grants and some loans; without those, I could not have attended WMU. I know today’s students have fewer opportunities to finance their education than I did. There are people who would like to go to college but feel that it is out of reach financially. Michael and I are leaving a legacy at WMU so that students can thrive in the business college and have access to high-quality, experiential learning.”

Mankin has held many executive positions in marketing with automaker Chrysler and enjoyed a career where he motivated teams, established positive corporate culture and worked to solve complex problems in order to see results.

“I took a marketing course and really fell in love with it,” he says. “I realized through market research and statistics that there was a science to marketing, and that sparked a passion that led me to a career I found very fulfilling and that never felt like work. WMU introduced to me a field I never would have considered before college.”

Additionally, Mankin was a member of Sigma Phi Epsilon and “held every office there was” in the fraternity, eventually becoming chapter president. “I think my involvement with Sigma Phi Epsilon contributed just as much to my success as my coursework. There, I was able to practice goal-setting and learned that people don’t do what you say just because you have a title. I learned through trial and error how to inspire people to action, and that served me well throughout my career.”

When Mankin thinks of the students who will benefit from the gift he and Michael made, he recalls how WMU exposed him to new ideas and people, and he hopes students will take all the opportunities they are offered. “If WMU had not accepted me, I would not have my career, the lifelong friends I made, or the perspective I gained from meeting people with varying ideas from different cultures. I hope students who receive our scholarship have doors opened for them, and that they walk through them and pursue their passions and find their success.”

With an estate gift, Mankin knows he will never meet the students the gift will impact. “I think it’s very cool that a child who is not even born yet will benefit from this scholarship. It feels good to help people, and I am a firm believer that education can be the key to a life well-lived. I still get that excited feeling each fall that I remember so well from my own days at WMU—knowing that students are returning to campus and everything it holds.”

Like Kelly and Michael, you can create a gift that will make a big impact on future generations of WMU students. For more information,  contact Jennifer Yelovina, senior director of gift planning at (269) 387-8791 or jennifer.yelovina@wmich.edu.