A $1M alumni gift expands graduate student success and inclusive excellence in tech

In 2022, when Pam Offutt ’82, computer science, visited campus 40 years after graduating, she was taken aback by two things: how much the university had changed and how much it had stayed the same.

“While I can still see the bones of what we knew, it is almost unrecognizable,” says Pam, who loved seeing the new buildings and how much the campus had physically grown since she and her husband, Jay Offutt ’82, computer science, graduated. However, Pam was shocked to see that the percentage of women majoring in computer science had not changed much since 1982.

“We were part of the first graduating class in computer science at UMBC. It was brand new,” says Pam. “Back then, 18 percent of the computer science population was women. When I came back to campus and looked it up, the percentage was around 20 percent. And that just doesn’t sit right after 40 years.”

Determined to be part of the solution, Pam and Jay established the Pam and Jay Offutt Graduate Student Endowment in May 2026 with a transformational $1,040,000 gift. This significant investment will expand the Center for Women in Technology (CWIT) model at the graduate level, helping CWIT Scholars pursue advanced degrees at UMBC—a primary driver for moving into senior management and executive leadership roles after graduation.

While Pam’s personal experience has centered on gender equity, the Offutt endowment is designed to support any CWIT Scholar as they pursue graduate education in computing or technology, reflecting CWIT’s broader mission of inclusive excellence.

“We are tremendously grateful for Pam and Jay’s vision, which supports our commitment to inclusive excellence,” says Jeanne van Briesen, dean of the College of Engineering and Information Technology. “The endowment will help strengthen the pipeline of talent prepared for leadership in computing and technology careers.”

UMBC’s CWIT program is committed to developing community members who are prepared and empowered to be change agents in creating technology workplaces that are diverse, equitable, and inclusive. The program encourages the participation and success of all students, especially those from underrepresented groups, with a nurturing and challenging community, transformative leadership experiences, and professional development opportunities. 

CWIT Scholars, Cyber Scholars, and affiliates before UMBC’s spring 2026 Commencement ceremony. (Cindy Greenwood, M.P.S. ’21/UMBC)

“The CWIT office is buzzing with happy plans for recruiting and supporting the first cohort of Offutt Scholars this fall,” says Carolyn Seaman, director of CWIT. “We are grateful for this opportunity to support so many more of our students in taking the next step toward being the tech leaders we know they can be.”

Going beyond the gift

Pam and Jay knew the problem they wanted to solve, but they took time to discuss the issue with Seaman, van Briesen, and Kim Robinson, director of major gifts in the Office of Institutional Advancement, to come up with a plan that felt like it could make a difference.

Simply funding scholarships wasn’t enough. Pam and Jay realized that in order to truly make a difference, they needed to find a way to support students throughout their academic journey. To the Offutts, the solution was simple—mentoring and leadership development.

Offutt Scholars will receive a financial award for two years to defray school expenses, participate in leadership development, mentor undergraduate CWIT Scholars, and be mentored by more senior alumni with similar professional interests. The endowment will also support staff and programming for Offutt Scholars through the CWIT Program. This investment extends beyond financial support to build a connected community across undergraduate students, graduate students, and professional mentors.

“What stands out to me about Pam and Jay’s vision is that they are not just investing in financial support for students—they are investing in a model that builds community, mentorship, and leadership that will shape how our students persist, succeed, and lead,” says van Briesen. “They asked us to think beyond access and to focus on what it takes for students to grow into leaders in the computing field.”

CWIT Scholars alumni, UMBC alumni, and industry partners come together for Fall Career Networking, a signature CWIT event. Many featured alumni also mentor in CWIT’s industry mentor program. (Jess Myers/UMBC)

Pam believes deeply in mentorship. She served on the UMBC Alumni Association Board of Directors from 1998 to 2004, and, most recently, served as a CWIT industry mentor. 

“What makes this gift so meaningful is the journey behind it,” says Robinson, who assisted in cultivating the relationship with the Offutts throughout their engagement with UMBC. “Pam has been engaged with UMBC in so many ways—through the Alumni Association Board, as a CWIT industry mentor, at career fairs—and that connection is exactly what led her and Jay to see this gap and want to help close it.” 

For Pam and Jay, it comes back to the experiences they had as undergraduate students at UMBC and how their careers unfolded after graduation.

Computer science pioneers

Pam and Jay both started UMBC as math majors—computer science was not yet an option—and met in Calculus 101. Boy meets girl. Boy and girl both become teaching assistants. Boy and girl form a close bond by terrorizing professors. 

“As TAs, Jay and I both had keys to the same office and we used to torture the same professors that were right across the hall from us, flipping bottle caps and stuff into their room while they were teaching,” says Pam. “So, that got the door slammed on us at least a couple of times.”

It’s the classic UMBC love story.

One semester before Pam and Jay were set to graduate, UMBC launched the B.S. in computer science. Knowing what it could mean for their job prospects and earning potential, both switched majors.

“I took a couple of extra classes and finished the B.S.,” says Pam. 

Left: Pam and Jay after their 1982 UMBC graduation. Right: The Offutts today. (Photos courtesy Pam and Jay Offutt)

After UMBC, Pam and Jay went on to Loyola University and earned master’s degrees.

In 1988, Jay founded Offutt Associates, which later folded into Interface and Control Systems, Inc. (ICS). Serving public and private sectors, ICS provided end-to-end autonomous command and control software for satellites, operational centers, testing setups, and digital business systems. Notably, ICS technology was integrated into major aerospace and defense initiatives, including NASA’s Constellation project and the Department of Defense’s TAC-SAT tactical satellite program. Jay and his partners sold ICS to SRA International in 2008, and Jay retired a few years later.

Meanwhile, Pam took on management and leadership roles in various companies, including COO at Edaptive Systems, LLC (acquired by ManTech) and CEO at MDMeta. In 2009, Pam and fellow UMBC alumnus John duClos ’90, information systems, founded Bellese Technologies, which engineers large-scale, human-centered digital products and data solutions that improve the quality, equity, and efficiency of public health systems. As CEO, Pam made a concerted effort to hire and promote women—successfully building a workforce that was 25 to 30 percent female. It was a stark contrast to the male-dominated workspaces she had experienced throughout her career, though still not the parity she envisioned. The problem, however, was not in the motivation, but in the small pool of potential female hires.

“You can’t find women to hire because women aren’t going into tech,” says Pam. “So it’s a difficult thing.”

Pam sold the company in 2022, and now serves on its Board of Directors. Around the same time, she had that inspirational visit to UMBC where she realized that she and Jay could be part of the solution, leading to the establishment of the Pam and Jay Offutt Graduate Student Endowment.

“I want to see that needle move,” says Pam.