Keith Murray '68

When Keith Murray ‘68 entered Poly as an eighth-grader, he noticed right away that Poly was different than his former school. To start with, classes were about half the size at Poly. This environment created what Keith described as a “tight-knit family” because at Poly. “the faculty gets to know everyone so well.”

When he looks back on his time at Poly, Keith remembers the high standard. “You had to really exert yourself to get a high grade. The definition of excellence at Poly was greater than what I was used to.” He also remembers learning to write from former faculty member John Manley. “He made my writing so much more simple and clear. I became known for my writing.”

This connection with writing led Keith to become the Poly representative for the Pasadena Star-News youth page as a student. Then the summer after graduating from Poly, Keith was chosen for one of the two intern positions at the paper. He did so well in the post that Keith worked for the Pasadena Star-News every summer during college and joined the staff after graduation then spent years as a reporter and then city editor. In 1978, he was transferred to Wichita, Kan., to work for the Wichita Eagle and Wichita Beacon. He spent more than two decades with the company before retiring.

Keith made his first gift to Poly soon after graduation and has been a consistent giver ever since. It was an easy decision because he says, “I was raised to support good causes.” Keith has chosen to support Poly by making the school a part of his estate plans by naming Poly as the beneficiary of his IRA. “It makes me feel like I’ve taken care of things in case something were to happen to me tomorrow.” And why did he think of POly? “I want to support the high standards and tight-knit community that is Poly, and I want the facilities to continue to be better than when I was there.”