By KATHY BRANDT
Development Writer
ust a year ago, David Packard gave $4 million to the College and
challenged us to raise additional funds. In response, the trustees voted to
match the gift four-to-one, creating a $20 million "Fund for the Future"
in support of teaching, learning and discovery. The campaign to raise $16
million by June 30, 1997, is in full swing. The College has already tallied
approximately $5 million in gifts and pledges.
"We received news of the Packard award just as we were putting
the finishing touches on the college's strategic plan," says President
Kathryn Mohrman. "I am convinced that because of this gift - and the
fortunate timing - we have an opportunity to increase significantly the quality
of education for our students.
The Packard gift, combined with the additional resources that will be
raised to meet the Packard Challenge, hastens the realization of several goals,
allowing the College to:
To date, environmental science has been allocated $50,000 in start up money
for their new office as well as for the Environmental Resource Center. An
additional $188,000 has been invested in academic computing to provide a more
coordinated approach to computer resources.
Packard Challenge funds from the W.M. Keck Foundation ($200,000) have been
earmarked for the geology department. State-of-the-art equipment will provide
students with outstanding research opportunities in emerging fields of
soft-rock geology.
The W.M.Keck Foundation, established in 1954 by the late William M. Keck, founder of the Superior Oil Company, awarded the geology department $100,000 in 1984. In addition, the Keck Foundation funds the Keck 12-College Geology Consortium, a group Colorado College has belonged to for eight years. In total, the W.M.Keck Foundation has made grants to the College of $1.1 million since 1984.
Money provided by The Kresge Foundation, an independent private
foundation created by the personal gifts of Sebastian S. Kresge, will buy a new
transmission electron microscope in biology. It will replace the old
microscope, which has become difficult and expensive to maintain. The new
microscope, as well as several others for the geology department, will be used
in classrooms and for research work. Mathematics, psychology and sports
science also will be acquiring new equipment, thanks to the Kresge grant.
Colorado College was one of seven colleges and universities in the
country to receive the Science Initiative Grant from The Kresge Foundation in
1994. The laboratory improvement component of the award is $250,000. The
second phase of the award is the Kresge Endowment Challenge. When the College
meets the $1 million goal set for the Challenge - through gifts from
individuals, foundations and corporations - The Kresge Foundation will award
an additional $250,000, establishing a $1.25 million endowment for repair and
replacement of existing science equipment for decades to come.
The swimming pool will be renovated because of a $800,000 gift from
The Schlessman Family Foundation, including Lee Schlessman '50 and Susan
Schlessman Duncan '52. Challenge funds have also been designated for need-based
scholarships for the Center for Community Service and for renovation of the
Max Kade German House.
Clearly, the effects of the Packard Challenge are being felt on
campus, providing students with the resources they need to be successful in the
decades ahead.
Sally L. Whitaker, grants coordinator, contributed to
this article.