One of the largest donations ever given to a historically black university aims to strengthen quantitative programs and diversify the student body.
The Duke Endowment awarded $35 million to Charlotte-based Johnson C. Smith University Oct. 12, representing the largest single gift the university has received from the endowment. The majority of the donation, $25 million, will fund a science center to support the science, technology, engineering and mathematics program, called STEM.
The donation largely recognizes the initiative of JCSU President Ronald Carter, said Sharon Harrington, assistant vice president of institutional advancement at JCSU and Duke Law ’89.
“Dr. Carter has demonstrated incredible leadership and vision for the university to become a premier independent urban institution,” Harrington said. “To achieve this mission, mass capital is needed, and we see this grant as a vote of confidence from our donors for his vision [and] his community presence in Charlotte as well as on campus.”
The Duke Endowment sought to recognize Carter’s ability to respect tradition while promoting innovation, said Susan McConnell, director of human resources and associate director of the higher education program at the Duke Endowment.
“Dr. Carter has a transformative vision for Johnson C. Smith,” McConnell said. “He is maintaining the very best of JCSU’s values and history while expanding the university’s mission to respond to an increasingly diverse, global and interconnected world.”
The grant includes $4.5 million to fund scholarships for international students and students majoring in science and technology, visual and performing arts and social work, Harrington said. Consistent with JCSU’s founding mission to provide a high quality liberal arts education for students who are traditionally underserved, the additional money will allow the university to achieve a more diverse student body, she noted.
“We can expand and promote the mission to reach out to broader populations—African Americans, international students—they are all consistent with the mission of the university,” Harrington said.
The money going to STEM will be used to increase the number of students enrolled in those disciplines from 300 students to 450 students by 2016, Harrington said.
The investment will also help increase applied research and prepare students for a changing workforce, said Sherry Belfield, director of university relations at JCSU.
“We do know that the U.S. is going to need to be a leader in STEM areas, and we put a lot of focus on training students in these fields,” she said.
The remaining $5.5 million will renovate Duke Hall, a residence building on campus.
Established in 1924 by James B. Duke, the Charlotte-based Duke Endowment is a private philanthropic foundation that supports select universities, rural churches and health and child care institutions in the Carolinas.
The foundation, financially separate from Duke University, awards grants to Duke, Davidson College, Furman University and JCSU. The Duke Endowment has given Duke more than $1.2 billion since 1924, with the largest single donation of $80 million granted last March to fund the renovation of the West Union Building, Page Auditorium and Baldwin Auditorium.
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