Idaho Educator Creates Scholarship Foundation to Honor Wife Lost to ALS
A retired Idaho school superintendent has channeled personal loss into lasting opportunity for Idaho students, establishing a scholarship foundation in memory of his wife who passed away from ALS in 2024.
Rich Bauscher, 73, who served as superintendent at the Kimberly and Middleton school districts before retiring in 2016, worked alongside his three adult children — Mistie, Matthew, and Megan — to create the LiNae Bauscher Foundation, named for the woman at the heart of their family.
LiNae Bauscher’s illness began with months of unexplained throat pain. A diagnosis of ALS arrived in July 2023, accompanied by a prognosis of roughly 15 months. The family held on to hope before the news was confirmed. “She took that a lot better than me and our three children,” Rich Bauscher said of the moment they learned the diagnosis. LiNae passed away in 2024.
A Family Effort to Honor an Idaho Life
The decision to build something lasting came naturally to a family rooted in education. Rich Bauscher said the family believed LiNae would have wanted her memory tied to learning. “She was born and raised in Idaho, so we decided it would be given to Idaho kids,” he said.
Before her illness, LiNae had been a constant presence at her grandchildren’s sporting events and school activities. That devotion to family and community shaped the foundation’s mission: supporting Idaho high school seniors who plan to attend a college or university within the state.
While Rich Bauscher knew what he wanted to build, the legal and financial mechanics of forming a nonprofit were unfamiliar territory. His son Matthew, who has a background in finance and real estate, stepped in and registered the LiNae Bauscher Foundation as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit — a move he kept secret until revealing it to his family with a symbolic check. “Everybody got really emotional knowing mom would have loved that,” Matthew Bauscher said.
Matthew has also spoken to the foundation’s broader purpose: keeping talented Idaho young people in the state. “Hopefully they have the skills that they can live in Idaho,” he said, noting concerns about cost of living and shrinking opportunities pushing graduates elsewhere.
From Grassroots Giving to 11 Scholarship Recipients
The foundation’s growth has been striking. In under seven months, more than 25 donors contributed over $40,000 to the effort. That funding has already supported 11 scholarship recipients.
When the family opened a new application round on April 1, nearly 100 submissions arrived by month’s end. The Bauschers reviewed the pool and selected 11 finalists for in-depth interviews. “We did a round robin of drilling them with questions,” Matthew Bauscher said, describing a rigorous process that covered GPA, extracurricular involvement, and college plans.
Applicants were also expected to research ALS and LiNae Bauscher’s life specifically. One question asked about her favorite song — “Humble and Kind,” the Grammy-winning Tim McGraw track. Rich Bauscher said he wanted to understand how each candidate would apply that spirit in their own life, the way LiNae had in hers.
The top recipient from this cycle is Charli Russell, an 18-year-old senior at Rocky Mountain High School in Meridian. She serves as student body president, captains her school’s volleyball team, and carries a 4.0 grade point average. “Her interview was completely top notch from start to finish,” Rich Bauscher said. The family surprised her at school with a $10,000 scholarship to Boise State University, an amount expected to cover her first two years.
Rich Bauscher also frames the application process itself as a teaching tool — one that helps students sharpen skills they will use throughout their lives. “If you interview for something, the same thing holds true,” he said. “You need to spend the hours that you possibly can on studying everything.”
What Comes Next
The LiNae Bauscher Foundation plans to make scholarships available on an annual basis going forward, continuing to prioritize Idaho students committed to staying in state for their college education. As the foundation grows, the Bauscher family hopes to expand both the number of recipients and the size of individual awards. Idaho students interested in future application cycles can monitor the foundation’s announcements for eligibility details and deadlines. For more coverage of education and community news across the Gem State, visit Idaho News and the Idaho News Network.