How a gift left by lifelong learners, Val and Tessa, will open doors for future mature students
A legacy gift left by Val and Tessa Frank will help ensure that future generations of mature students have the opportunity to pursue higher education, just as they did.
Val Frank was born in 1925 and, like many of his generation, was unable to attend university due to the Second World War. Serving in the Merchant Navy during the war, he later went on to work and only found the opportunity to study for his degree in retirement.
His wife Theresa, known as Tessa, was four years younger and an exceptional scholar in her own right. After completing a BA and MA in English, Tessa dedicated much of her career to teaching English, including 18 years as a nun.
When Tessa and Val decided to retire, it provided them with the opportunity to study, which they relished. In 1991, at the ages of 66 and 62, Val and Tessa joined the University of York community as mature students. Tessa studied for an MA in Medieval Studies and Val commenced an undergraduate History degree.
Val and Tessa on their wedding day, 1976
Their legacy gift to the University comes at a time when we are striving to create a more inclusive experience for mature students. As we work to become the University of Opportunity, we aim to support those who, like Val and Tessa, choose to return to education later in life.
Mature undergraduate students often face unique challenges. They are more likely than younger students to be underrepresented in higher education, and have additional responsibilities such as family or caregiving duties.
Our ambition to be a University of Opportunity for all students, including those who choose to study later in life, is part of our founding principles. Our first Vice-Chancellor, Lord James, expressed in 1963:
‘Above all, opportunity has increased enormously: opportunity for people, whatever their social background, to lead genuinely fuller lives. It is that expansion of opportunity that I care about more than almost anything else.’
From our earliest days, York has welcomed mature students. In 1963, our first intake of 227 students included 64-year-old George Crofts. George was born in 1899 and lived to be 100 - he gave up his job as a pharmacist to study Economics and Politics, committed to learning something new about the society he lived in. Another early student, Mary Cooper, a mother of four studying Social Science, once said: ‘Great things are going on in the world and I want to be among them.’
Sadly, Val and Tessa have both passed away in recent years, in 2017 and 2024. Thanks to their kindness, they left a gift in their will which will go towards opening doors for more mature students to study here at York.
Val and Tessa’s gift will help ensure that more students, regardless of age or background, can access higher education. Their generosity will help the University provide essential resources, support services, and financial assistance to those who choose to pursue learning later in life.
Val and Tessa, 2010
If you’d like to learn more about leaving a gift to the University of York in your will, please contact our Legacy Manager, Maresa Bailey, at maresa.bailey
Find out more about our ambition to be a University of Opportunity, where every student has the chance to succeed.