On Friday the University of Dayton announced a major gift that will allow them to build on the schools sustainability education. The $12.5 million dollar gift from the George and Amanda Hanley Foundation is the largest gift the University of Dayton has ever received. The gift was announced at a ceremony on UD’s campus.
Paul Benson the interim provost at UD says the Hanley Sustainability Institute at UD will prepare students for careers and civic leadership roles that will be in high demand in the future.
“Sustainability issues have really come to be at the heart of a lot of human conflict, and so as we think about this initiative, we think about the broader meaning of serving the cause of peace and justice and common good through sustainability education," Benson said.
George Hanley founded the Chicago-based Hanley Group, and is a 1977 Business grad from UD. His Wife Amanda says sustainability studies weren’t an option when she went to college in the Reagan era and now welcomes the change.
“It just warms my heart that were at a place where sustainability has taken the forefront in how we look at the world,” she said.
UD plans to double the Hanley’s donation of twelve and a half million dollars through foundations, corporations and other donors to fully fund the new institute.
According to the University, Initial objectives of the institute will include:
● Developing an interdisciplinary graduate certificate in sustainability.
● Creating an urban agriculture demonstration project with community partners in Dayton.
● Establishing Hanley Research Fellows and Hanley Scholars-in-Residence to support student and faculty research.
● Inaugurating the Hanley Conference on Sustainability Education to convene dialogue on innovations in sustainability learning.
● Earning a gold STARS (Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System) designation from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education and eventually becoming the top-rated Catholic university on that list.
About the George and Amanda Hanley Foundation (from the University of Dayton):
George and Amanda Hanley created their family foundation in 1997. It has come to support organizations that are advancing environmental, educational and social empowerment solutions, both on a local and global scale. They are particularly drawn to innovative models in sustainability that can lead to wider systemic change and greater impact.
