At its meeting on Saturday, October 26, the Corporation of Brown University announced that it had accepted or ratified a number of gifts, of which $8.5 million were designated for the School of Engineering. By University policy, all gifts of $1 million or more require formal acceptance by the Corporation. These gifts included:
- $5 million from anonymous donors, of which $4 million is to endow a chair in engineering, science, or mathematics, and $1 million is to endow a research fund associated with the professorship.
- $2.25 million from Brown parents H. David Hibbitt Ph.D. '72, and Susan Buck Hibbitt '70, to establish an endowment for graduate fellowships in the School of Engineering.
- $1.25 million from anonymous donors to establish a flexible fund to support Brown's initiatives in engineering and entrepreneurship, to be allocated at the discretion of the president and the dean of the School of Engineering.
In addition, the Corporation announced the establishment of an endowed professorship. Having received sufficient funds as required by University policy, the Corporation established, effective immediately, the Joan Wernig Sorensen Professorship in Engineering.
"We are so grateful for the continued support of alumni, parents, and friends. These gifts will have lasting and important impact on the School of Engineering for many years, helping us to attract world-class faculty and graduate students to Brown. At the same time, they will allow us to expand our efforts creating a more robust program in entrepreneurship," said Larry Larson, Dean of the School of Engineering.
With these new gifts, the School of Engineering has now raised $55 million toward its current fundraising goal of $160 million.