Susan Root Collins Faculty Scholar

In March of 2025, Susan Root Collins, ’68, ’70, and Michael A. Collins, ’79, made plans to establish the Susan Root Collins Endowed Faculty Scholar Fund in the College of Education through a generous estate gift. The fund will help the college attract and retain outstanding faculty.

Sue used her science education from Oregon State University to have an impactful career in education. After earning an undergraduate science degree from OSU, she continued at the Corvallis campus to complete her master’s in Earth sciences with support from a National Science Foundation fellowship. She taught science before joining the Washington State Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction in the early days of classroom technology. Sue led the creation of legislation to fund technology centers for educators, making Washington a national model – and catching the attention of Apple, which hired her as an educational technology consultant. After leading the education initiatives of several tech companies, she started her own company, advising businesses on educational strategy. Sue was appointed to the Web-Based Education Commission by President Bill Clinton and testified before Congress to advance tech in education.

Mike Collins enlisted in the U.S. Army before attending the College of Forestry on the GI Bill. After a couple of years in the forestry industry, he used the electronics skills he’d gained in the army for a career in the electrical distribution business.