Doing it For the Dolls:
Jane Swanson’s love for the Cougar Dolls will provide music-related scholarships.
Jane Swanson (’77) created memories to last a lifetime during her years as a University of Houston Cougar Doll in the mid-1970s. Those experiences led her to establish the Jane Fitz Cougar Dolls Scholarship.
“My time at UH went by so fast,” she said. “I was in a group that had so much spirit; it was impossible to walk away.”
In fact, she never did. Fifty years later, she still gets together with her dance team members for fun and to perform at events.
Singing the national anthem at a UH sporting event
Singing the national anthem at a UH sporting event
These are members of the marching band who often get together and reminisce. They also are the ones who sang the national anthem (left). At the time, the Cougar Dolls were part of the marching band. Now they are two separate groups. Jane is in the center, with white hair.
These are members of the marching band who often get together and reminisce. They also are the ones who sang the national anthem (left). At the time, the Cougar Dolls were part of the marching band. Now they are two separate groups. Jane is in the center, with white hair.
Jane Swanson and a friend with President Renu Khator
Jane Swanson and a friend with President Renu Khator
“They’ve had a lifelong impact on me,” said Swanson. “We don’t dance much anymore, but we’ve had the opportunity to sing the national anthem at several UH sporting events.”
Swanson’s years at UH represented a special era in the University’s history.
“At this time, the Dolls were part of the marching band,” she said. “We learned to march and developed drills that interacted with the band. There was so much camaraderie, and this was the time when UH joined the football Southwest Conference. It was our glory days, for sure, and my experience with the Cougar Dolls was the heart of UH for me.”
Swanson worked with the UH Office of Gift and Estate Planning to bequeath her historic Galveston Island home to establish the Fitz Scholarship fund. This generous donation will create a scholarship for the Cougar Dolls. If the Dolls ever cease to exist, the funds will be directed to the band in the Moores School of Music.
Swanson first started the scholarship fund with an inheritance from her mother, and the eventual sale of the home will continue to boost the principal and increase the scholarship balance.
“The house called to me the first time I saw the real estate listing,” she said. “I expected it to be sold before I could even do a walkthrough. Obviously, the house had other ideas, and 12 years later, here I am!”
The property comes complete with a history of the many musicians who have lived there over the years and who still manifest themselves today as ghosts. She wants to ensure that her legacy continues to support musicians.
“Music was very big in Galveston at this time, and it seems only fitting that I’d be the current owner and that in the future, this house will continue to support music education.
“I prioritize supporting UH alumni,” she said. “My doctor, my CPA — they’re alumni. It’s important to me to support UH in any way possible.”
This is Jane modeling the fashionable UH Cougar Dolls original-style boots from the early 1970s. These aren’t her actual boots, but she went out of her way to obtain these in an online auction. Now they're on display in her living room.
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