When Samuel Stewart ’73 MBA returned from serving in the Vietnam War, he was unsure what his next chapter would look like. Although he held a liberal arts undergraduate degree from Duke University, economic conditions were challenging, and jobs weren’t plentiful.  

While interviewing for a position at a major Boston bank, he was told he should look into pursuing his master's in business administration (MBA). As a result, he landed at UMass Amherst and received crucial financial support through the GI Bill.  

He remembers being a highly motivated student before the war but feeling like an outsider when he returned. As an x-ray technician in a field hospital in the Vietnam Central Highlands, he had met many others like himself whose education and professional development were interrupted.  

Working at the UMass campus center gave Stewart the opportunity to meet new people and develop some business acumen through inventory and marketing tasks with the bookstore.

Today, UMass Amherst is one of U.S. News and World Report's top 40 Best Colleges for Veterans. The university offers services and support programs that help student veterans as they pursue their degrees, giving them the resources needed to thrive at UMass and beyond.

Stewart's time in the MBA program – now housed in the Isenberg School of Management – set him up for success as a certified public accountant. He started his career at Deloitte & Touche in Boston and later served in senior finance positions at UMass Chan School of Medicine. It was there that he learned more about the funding needs of public higher education.

“The medical school was top notch,” he says. “But there was always a budget crunch.”

One of the things that stayed with him from his involvement in budget meetings were the needs of the libraries in particular.

“There’s no direct constituency for giving to the library. Subscriptions to databases and journals are very expensive but essential to the students. It seemed like a good place to help out.”

Samuel Stewart ’73 MBA

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At UMass Amherst, Stewart has created both the Samuel K. Stewart, Jr. Libraries Endowment Fund and the Samuel K. Stewart, Jr. Endowed Scholarship for undergraduates with significant need.

He says his mantra is to "have a joke every day and to try to do something nice for other people every day, even if it’s just opening the door for somebody." He also credits his late wife with being a stellar example of service to others.

“My wife was devoted to helping people,” he says. “She was a camp counselor, worked in medical labs, and was involved with our church, helping people who walked in off the streets with basic needs and finding resources.”

Now retired, Stewart’s public service extends beyond education to the congregational church he and his wife attended in the Worcester area and the Worcester Area Mission Society, where he serves as a board member and former treasurer.

“I’m at a stage in my life where I’m able to pay it forward. If I find out about opportunities where I can help, I want to do that.”

Samuel Stewart ’73 MBA

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Stewart also considers himself a lifelong learner, saying the impact of his liberal arts degree has never left him. He has taken courses on Shakespeare plays, Oscar Wilde, Samuel Beckett, music, and general art history. He is also involved in a Worcester-based chorus, a poetry group, and a history group, the latter of which offered the opportunity to explore Ken Burns’s documentary on the American Revolution and details about the War of 1812.  

As a public institution of higher learning that continually works to disseminate knowledge to the community, UMass Amherst continues to hold a place in his heart.  

“We have some of the brightest kids in the state coming to UMass,” he says. “They need to understand that education is not a one-way street. The University Libraries have been supported by alumni, and we hope that someday, they’ll support them in the same way.”

You can make a difference for UMass Amherst student veterans and their peers by making a gift to the Veterans Support Fund or the University Libraries Dean’s Fund for Excellence.