Even over the phone you can tell it’s a cherished story.
“When I was in high school, my dad, who graduated in 1950, would go to Brown football games with former classmates, sometimes bringing me,” says Conrad Herrmann. “They’d tailgate and everything. One time my dad asked why didn’t the University upgrade the stadium? It’s so run-down. The person next to him turned and said it doesn’t just happen, it requires people to become involved. Why don’t you get involved?”
And so Lacy Herrmann did, working with the alumni network and instituting Operation Pride, which raised the funds necessary for the installation of new stadium seats in 1978—the 100th anniversary of Brown football.
It’s a lesson not lost on his son, Conrad, a 1982 Brown graduate who also gives of his time and treasure. “I experimented a lot, choosing classes by checking who the noted professors were in the University at that time,” he says. He studied under Tom Banchoff, now professor emeritus in mathematics, who had a fascination with the fourth dimension; and with Andy Van Dam, the present Thomas J. Watson, Jr. University Professor of Technology and Education and Professor of Computer Science “in the early stages of computer sciences as a discipline. My favorite professor, though, was Dean Hazeltine: I took ENGN 9 and ENGN 90 and later became one of his TAs.”
And Hazeltine, who was instrumental in Conrad going for an MBA at Harvard, also taught and mentored his daughter, Christine Herrmann—a 2016 Brown graduate who herself served as an engineering TA.
“I give to the University because of my personal connections and because I believe that the commitment of the University to the School of Engineering is valid,” says Conrad. “Scientific concentrations in general are important for America and for the world at large. The new research building, for example, is a huge undertaking and very exciting. So, too, is the integration of different disciplines. Think about it: if you need a new kidney, there may come a time when you will be able to produce one from your own stem cells and generate it using 3D-printing technology. That’s fascinating, both as an individual and as an investor in Brown.
“Dean Larry Larson has done a fabulous job. I met him when he committed to becoming a dean, so to watch his progress over the years has been a delight.”
Conrad recently took a retirement package from Franklin Templeton, where he had worked as a portfolio manager for 27 years. Travel plans, new and ongoing volunteer commitments, and time to reflect on the next phase of his life have all figured strongly since then. Judging by the sound of his voice, however, the highlight has been being present for Christine—particularly her participation in building and then competing with Brown’s Formula SAE race car at Michigan International Speedway in April and her graduation in May.
During last year’s Family Weekend, Conrad and Christine walked to the stadium that Lacy had helped restore so many years before. There, on the wall, was a plaque engraved with her late grandfather’s name, commemorating his fundraising efforts. A lesson in commitment and philanthropy that, one suspects, will not be lost on her, either.