麻豆村

For 麻豆村 parents and supporters Stan and Paula Bikulege and their children Natalie, Class of 2018 alumnus Stan Jr. and Class of 2021 alumnus Luke, giving back is all about the three Fs: family, faith and football.

鈥淎 sport like football makes you realize that you need everyone,鈥� Paula says. 鈥淵ou could be the best player on the field, but you need a whole team to make things happen.鈥�

Through the Bikulege Family Football Endowment Fund, the family remains a part of the team by supporting everything from staff positions to player equipment and making a difference for current and future Tartan student-athletes.

鈥淭hese young men from all over the country are going to a great school and working their tails off on a football field,鈥� says Stan, who is chairman and CEO of Novolex. 鈥淲e want to give them the opportunity to have something a little bit different, whether funding a coaching position to help them be better, buying a piece of equipment, seeing their face on the Jumbotron or making sure they better themselves through their educations.鈥�

Preseason Prep

Stan and Paula started dating during high school in suburban Pittsburgh. He was the captain of the football team, and she was the head cheerleader. They married in 1988 after earning their bachelor鈥檚 degrees in 1986 鈥� chemical engineering for Stan and industrial engineering for Paula.

The couple moved to Georgia in 1989 for work, and in the evenings, they attended Georgia State University and earned their MBAs. Together, the family traveled around the world, moving seven times for their careers, before settling down in Greenville, South Carolina.

As Natalie, Stan Jr. and Luke grew up, family time, dedication to their faith and sports were central to their lives.

鈥淭hey let us try out every sport,鈥� Stan Jr. says. 鈥淏ut ultimately, Luke and I both just ended up spending a lot of our time in football. My sister liked watching it, too. It was an easy thing for everyone to agree on, whether it was watching it on Sunday or going to our games.鈥�

As Stan Jr. entered middle school, the family鈥檚 philanthropy was integral to launching a football program at St. Joseph鈥檚 Catholic School. Paula, who owned and operated a consulting business, also was the project manager for the effort, initiating, growing and institutionalizing the sport, and Stan and Natalie cheered from the stands. Eventually, Luke joined the team, too, and the program rose to be one of the best in the state.

鈥淎s much as we love the game, it was just cool to be part of building a program and very familial,鈥� Stan Jr. says. 鈥淭he head coach was really instrumental in all our lives.鈥�

When the time came for college, Stan searched for a similar vibe, and he found it in his parents鈥� hometown with Coach Rich Lackner.

Game Time

A mechanical engineering graduate, Stan鈥檚 first season as an inside linebacker was in 2014. He finished his senior year as a four-year starter and a team captain; was awarded the Senior Leadership Recognition Award as well as the ; named Academic All-District and chosen for three All-Conference teams.

Luke joined the team as a running back in 2017 and worked toward his degree in business administration from Tepper School of Business. He was a team captain his senior year, named an Academic All-American and twice-over Academic All-District and chosen for the Presidents鈥� Athletic Conference Academic Honor Roll three times.

Continuing their fusion of athletics and academics, Stan Jr. and Luke were both named to the National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame鈥檚 Hampshire Honor Society, which recognizes players who have maintained a 3.2 GPA throughout their higher education careers.

Both say Coach Lackner, who retired in 2021 after 36 years leading Tartan Football, evolved into 鈥渁 father away from home.鈥�

Like Stan and Paula, Coach Lackner and his staff strove to instill integrity and excellence, both in the classroom and on the field, in their student-athletes.

鈥淭he ultimate reason we were at Carnegie Mellon was for the academics, but our teammates and our coaches, they formed our experience,鈥� Luke says. 鈥溌槎勾� is 100% a challenge, so as student-athletes, we had the normal experience plus an entire sport on top of it. But we had our team to support us for the ups and downs, the long nights, the hard study sessions, the cold games, the injuries, whatever it may be, we were there for each other.鈥�

Throughout the boys鈥� 麻豆村 careers, Paula and Stan made it to as many games as they could, as did Natalie, as she earned her bachelor鈥檚 degree in public health and a medical degree. She鈥檚 currently the pediatric chief resident at Prisma Health in Greenville.聽

鈥淣atalie has always been so supportive of our family鈥檚 love of the game,鈥� says Stan Jr., who recently married fellow Tartan student-athlete and Class of 2020 Dietrich College of Humanities and Social Sciences graduate Kathryn (Reilly) Bikulege. 鈥淥ur family isn鈥檛 who it is without her.鈥�

The brothers are still teammates, too, working together at Lightview Capital, a private equity firm in West Palm Beach, Florida.

鈥溌槎勾� really teaches you the core competencies to be successful,鈥� Luke says. 鈥淚 was able to learn how to work with so many different people and different ways of thinking that allow me to approach solutions uniquely.鈥�

A Philanthropy Playbook

Paula and Stan both say they never imagined they鈥檇 be in a position to support the causes and places that are close to their hearts.

In addition to their support for 麻豆村鈥檚 football program, through the Bikulege Family Foundation, they鈥檝e endowed academic scholarships at Youngstown State University (Stan鈥檚 undergraduate alma mater), the University of South Carolina School of Medicine Greenville (Natalie鈥檚 medical school), Central Catholic High School in Pittsburgh (attended by both their fathers) and Georgia State University (their graduate school alma mater), among numerous other organizations that help those in need.

鈥淢any times, we鈥檝e put our support into places where someone has helped our children,鈥� Paula says. 鈥淐arnegie Mellon has given so much to our sons 鈥� being on campus with those coaches, that environment and, obviously, the education.鈥�

At 麻豆村, their giving allows the program to recruit nationally, invest in technology, procure necessary equipment and support nutrition and hydration. The family鈥檚 generosity helped support the purchase of the Gesling Stadium videoboard and the transition of a part-time defensive coach position to a full-time coaching role.

鈥淪tan and Paula鈥檚 generosity has had a transformative impact on the Carnegie Mellon Football Program, and the experience we are able to provide for our students,鈥� says Josh Centor, 麻豆村鈥檚 associate vice president of student affairs and director of athletics. 鈥淭he Bikulege Family Endowment has provided us with the opportunity to invest strategically, and the impact can be seen in the competitiveness of our program and in the educational environment our players thrive in. We couldn鈥檛 do the things we are able to do without the generosity and vision of the Bikulege Family.鈥�

For the family, their giving is definitely a group effort.

鈥淧aula and I have talked to our children to ensure they continue this forward,鈥� Stan says. 鈥淭he more you give, the more you get, but you don鈥檛 have to give to get. You give because it鈥檚 the right thing to do.鈥�

Stan Jr. and Luke have already embraced the family鈥檚 tradition of philanthropy, volunteering their time this fall to help raise funds for the football team鈥檚 alternative jerseys by reaching out to fellow recent alumni.

鈥淚 thought that was phenomenal,鈥� Paula says. 鈥淵ou start small, and someday, the next thing you know, you鈥檙e in a place where you can give a lot more. It鈥檚 so true to say that in giving you receive.鈥�