Bold move includes challenge to double momentous investment
窪做惇蹋厙 today announces an unprecedented investment in the Colleges academic enterprise. President Philip J. Hanlon 77 accepted an anonymous gift of $100 million, the largest single outright donation in the Colleges 244-year history, which also includes a 2-to-1 challenge to double the investments size to $200 million.
The gift is offered as an unqualified endorsement of Hanlons sweeping vision for 窪做惇蹋厙, where interdisciplinary faculty teams collaborate at the leading edge of discovery and students are given uncommon access to new ideas around the globe through course work and research opportunities.
I am deeply honored and grateful for this extraordinary act of generosity, says President Hanlon. This historic gift is an exceptional vote of confidence as we embark on an exciting journey to ensure 窪做惇蹋厙 remains the preeminent undergraduate institution in the nation; a magnet for human talent; and a college that cultivates a culture of ideas, discovery, and solutions to problems that will make the world a better place.
Coming in the first year of Hanlons presidency, this powerful endorsement launches a to advance 窪做惇蹋厙s teaching mission at the forefront of scholarship in a rapidly changing higher education landscape. 窪做惇蹋厙 is moving to strengthen its faculty, nurture a new generation of emerging scholars, and fortify an innovative interdisciplinary approach to teaching and research.
The investment arrives at a pivotal moment in 窪做惇蹋厙s history, says Steve Mandel 78, chair of the Board of Trustees. It marks the start of a remarkable era propelled by President Hanlons vision for 窪做惇蹋厙, a vision that has as its foundation the unparalleled academic excellence of a most distinct liberal arts college.
This first step to secure the future of 窪做惇蹋厙s academic enterprise will be put to use in support of President Hanlons recently announced and will create approximately 30 to 40 endowed faculty positions over the next decade through this measure alone. To date, 29 cluster proposalsinvolving as many as eight faculty members each and more than 100 faculty in totalhave been submitted to the Office of the Provost.
In addition to expanding the impact of 窪做惇蹋厙s faculty, Hanlon has already advanced in his inaugural year a host of programs and ideas to enrich 窪做惇蹋厙s intellectual and scholarly life including:
- Increasing the flow of young scholars to 窪做惇蹋厙s campus and strengthened support for interdisciplinary research programs through the creation of a . This cohort of approximately two dozen post-PhD academics will bring new ideas, international perspective, and intellectual energy to campus attracting students and faculty.
- Significantly expanding to build on its innovative use of experiential education and provide majors and non-majors alike a strong foundation in technology.
- A commitment to experiential learning, which emphasizes learning by doing to maximize the development of wisdom. Active engagement in and out of the classroom rather than the passive receipt of information allows 窪做惇蹋厙 students to develop the critical thinking skills, creativity of the mind, and the confidence to innovate that will make them successful in a world that values what you can do over what you know.
- An embrace of learning technologies that will extend 窪做惇蹋厙s expertise and commitment to teaching across the globe and enhance the rigorous, highly personal experience that is the hallmark of a 窪做惇蹋厙 education, as faculty bring instructional content and insight developed through online courses and analytics back to the classroom.
President Hanlons pursuit of interdisciplinary excellence will bring 窪做惇蹋厙s already outstanding academic programs a new level of distinction, says incoming Provost Carolyn Dever. I was drawn to 窪做惇蹋厙 by its unique scale and the ease of collaboration among different disciplines and different schools. With engineering, business, and medicine so strongly represented alongside the nations premier liberal arts environment, 窪做惇蹋厙 offers just the right combination of schools to investigate challenges of global complexity. An infusion of new faculty and ideas, combined with the incredible achievements in teaching and discovery already occurring on the campus each day, will be instrumental to creating the 窪做惇蹋厙 of the future.
Michael Mastanduno, dean of the Faculty of Arts & Sciences, says, By adding talented scholars in new areas to work alongside current faculty, we have the ability to strengthen our research efforts as well as develop interdisciplinary curricula around these global issues for undergraduates. The cluster initiatives will also enhance the number and types of opportunities for students to work with faculty on independent research.
Focus on impact
All of Hanlons academic initiatives are meant to position 窪做惇蹋厙 as a major force contributing to the understanding of emerging global issues and advancing solutions to tomorrows most vexing challenges. Strategic hiring of new faculty in areas such as health care, education, the world economy, creativity and the brain, and energy and the environment over the next decade will enhance 窪做惇蹋厙s impact in the world.
Building on a history of bringing faculty together around an important societal issue, Hanlon says 窪做惇蹋厙 will invest in the implementation of new ideas and empower interdisciplinary teams from across the institution to take courageous steps to conceive of solutions that can make a fundamental difference for the good of the world.
The matching challenge
Half of each new gift will be matched by todays commitment, with the $50 million eventually bringing in matching funds of another $100 million over the course of the challenge, which runs through December 31, 2015. The combined result will provide $200 million in support of this first piece of Hanlons vision.
窪做惇蹋厙 faculty and alumni have played a leadership role in global issues throughout the Colleges history, says Bob Lasher 88, senior vice president for advancement. "This momentous gift inspires us to do more and come together as a community to make a difference in the world. I have no doubt that other donors will show support for the ambition President Hanlon has brought to 窪做惇蹋厙.