Atlas Model Railroad teams with Stevens for new scholarship
HOBOKEN, N.J. — To commemorate its 50th anniversary, Atlas Model Railroad Co, Inc. has teamed with Stevens Institute of Technology to establish a new scholarship that will benefit generations of deserving Stevens students.
The endowed scholarship, to be known as the Stephan J. Schaffan/Atlas Model Railroad Company Scholarship, was established by Atlas with a $50,000 gift to Stevens. The endowment will be made possible by the proceeds from Atlas’ Limited-Edition 60’ Autoparts Single-Door Box Car model, offered for sale as part of the company’s anniversary.
"We’re really excited about celebrating Atlas’ 50th anniversary this year," said Atlas CEO Thomas W. Haedrich. "That’s why we decided to make it special by setting up this scholarship."
This way, Atlas customers can have a piece of history with the anniversary car and help support a good cause as well, he added.
Atlas, headquartered in Hillside, N.J., and Stevens, in Hoboken, share a rich history in railroads — model and full-scale — and in the tradition of innovative founding families.
Atlas Tool & Die Company began as a general tool and machine shop, founded by Stephan J. Schaffan, Sr. in the 1920s. His son, Stephan Schaffan, Jr., later entered the business and developed a fixture to solder model railroad turnouts together. He invented the first practical model rail joiner and began selling track and related products. In 1949, Atlas Tool Co. was incorporated, and "Atlas," the model railroad manufacturer, was born.
About Stevens and Railroads
Stevens Institute of Technology was founded in 1870 by a family of American inventors who, among other inventions, pioneered the first steam train in America and the country’s first commercial railroad, the Camden Amboy Railroad Company. Today Stevens continues its founders’ tradition of bringing new technologies to the world.
About Stevens Institute of Technology
Founded in 1870 and celebrating 140 Years of Innovation, Stevens Institute of Technology, The Innovation University TM , lives at the intersection of industry, academics and research. The University's students, faculty and partners leverage their collective real-world experience and culture of innovation, research and entrepreneurship to confront global challenges in engineering, science, systems and technology management.
Based in Hoboken, N.J. and with a location in Washington, D.C., Stevens offers baccalaureate, master’s, certificates and doctoral degrees in engineering, the sciences and management, in addition to baccalaureate degrees in business and liberal arts. Stevens has been recognized by both the US Department of Defense and the Department of Homeland Security as a National Center of Excellence in the areas of systems engineering and port security research. The University has a total enrollment of more than 2,200 undergraduate and 3,700 graduate students with almost 450 faculty. Stevens’ graduate programs have attracted international participation from China, India, Southeast Asia, Europe and Latin America as well as strategic partnerships with industry leaders, governments and other universities around the world. Additional information may be obtained at www.stevens.edu and www.stevens.edu/press.
