Joseph Appelt was born in Grand Rapids. Upon graduating from Creston High School, Joe was fortunate enough to earn a scholarship which would pay the cost of tuition for him to attend the University of Michigan. This assistance permitted Joe to successfully complete his degree in Architecture and Engineering. The help that was provided to Joe instilled in him a desire to help students in the pursuit of their college aspirations. In the past, he initiated the engineering scholarship program for the Western Chapter of the Michigan Society of Professional Engineers (MSPE).

Joe became a Registered Professional Engineer in four states and served as a Professional Mechanical and Electrical Consultant to over 30 Architectural, Engineering and Industrial firms on over 100 construction projects of all types and sizes.

He was awarded the “Engineer of the Year” by both the Western Chapter of MSPE and by the Michigan MSPE. He was later presented with the “Outstanding Engineer of the Year Award” by the MSPE Professional Engineers in Private Practice Division. Joe held many positions in MSPE up to and including State Vice President. 

Joe was appointed by Governor Romney, and re-appointed two times by Governor Milliken, to serve on the Board of Registration for Architects, Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors. As the last Chairperson of the Joint Architects, Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors, he assisted in organizing three separate Boards and was the first Chairperson of the separate Board for Professional Engineers. 

Joe was a member of the GVSU Engineering Advisory Board since its creation in 1983 until his death in 2007.

Two or more nonrenewable scholarships of $500 each will be awarded to freshmen entering the School of Engineering. These competitive scholarships have been established as part of the Appelt Endowment to support engineering education in accredited programs with a major environmental emphasis.

To be eligible, a student must:

1. Apply for admission to GVSU  prior to December 31
2. Demonstrate an interest in environmental issues
3. Have a minimum High School cumulative GPA of 3.00
4. Have an ACT math subscore of at least 26 and a composite score of at least 23, or an SAT math score of at least 650 and an SAT total of at least 1140
5. Have at least 6 units of high school math and science