A native of Yuma, Arizona, this alumnus was offered a full scholarship to attend the University of Arizona. His parents, who had limited resources to fund his education, considered the local university the practical choice, as did his high school counselors. Yet, this alumnus’ heart and mind wanted Caltech. In his junior year of high school, his science teacher drove him and other talented students to Pasadena for Seminar Day. Witnessing Caltech’s faculty and students perform experiments in the laboratory and hearing them discuss their research was thrilling.
Thanks to Caltech’s scholarship support, he accepted an offer of admission. Still, finances were a concern.
In the late 1960s and early 1970s, classmates would see this alumnus selling tickets at the box office and giving campus tours to prospective students to earn income. His favorite job was at The Athenaeum. This student waiter would not only serve Caltech’s Nobel laureates and prominent guests, including Jane Goodall and violinist Isaac Stern, but also be provided free lunch and dinner.
“You’d get paid five bucks and get two free meals,” he says. “It was nice. I ate a lot better than most college students.”
After his third year at Caltech, the chemistry major realized he only needed two classes to graduate. He proposed enrolling as both an undergraduate and graduate student, and faculty in the Division of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering agreed to it. As a master’s student, he could dig deeper into X-ray crystallography, and the Institute would cover his tuition.
This alumnus did more than work and study. He lent his baritone voice to the Caltech production of The Threepenny Opera and to Caltech’s Glee Club, singing classic compositions from Brahms and Bach. The son of a music teacher, he thought he was well-versed in octaves and harmonies until he learned that Caltech’s high standards extended to every facet of campus life.
“By being pushed to perform at this incredibly high level, we became a more cohesive unit and formed a collective ego,” he says. “It was very powerful.”
By graduation, this alumnus had saved $5,000, traveled up and down the state and to Hawaii with the Glee Club, and earned
two degrees.
“I ended up going through two lines on graduation day, one for undergrads and one for master’s students,” he says. “I changed hats or whatever they do to signify degrees.
It was a little different graduation experience, I ended up with two pieces of paper instead of one.”
After he earned his doctorate in chemistry from Princeton University, this alumnus returned to Caltech as a postdoctoral scholar to focus on organometallic chemistry. Moving to California and performing research at his alma mater was an easy decision.
“Whether you are an undergraduate, graduate student, or postdoc, the faculty at Caltech treat you as a colleague,” he says. “That makes all the difference in the world.”
He then embarked on a successful career introducing physicians and hospital administrators to the then-novel technology of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Initially, he supported General Electric’s sales team, answering questions about MRI’s capabilities and the financial impact of purchasing the machine. In 1987, he launched his own MRI consultancy firm and continues to advise clients on purchasing decisions and assist with maintenance and troubleshooting issues.
Grateful for the financial aid he received more than 50 years ago, Robert “Bob” Bell (BS ’72, MS ’72) wanted to help make a Caltech education more accessible for today’s students. Bob and his wife, Jane, established the Robert A. Bell Family Scholarship in 2018. The couple is adding to the scholarship through gifts directly from their IRAs. This approach, known as qualified charitable distributions, satisfies their required minimum distributions without raising their income taxes.
“The scholarship support I received at Caltech was absolutely vital,” he says. “It is very important for me to give students the same opportunities I had.”
Still resourceful, Bell repairs lab equipment and donates it to Caltech and 20 other universities and nonprofits. He and Jane also have served as Tables for Techers hosts multiple times, an annual event that brings together alumni and students at intimate, local gatherings all over the world to connect and share a meal.
“From the beginning, my relationship with Caltech has felt like family,” Bell says. “What I value most is continuing my relationship with Caltech and encouraging other folks to support Caltech in any way they can.”