During a period of continued bad financial news from Richmond, the University received some good news from the estate of the late David A. Harrison III, a longtime benefactor to the University.
University President John T. Casteen III announced Oct. 2 that the late David A. Harrison III, University College and Law School alumnus, left $114 million to the University -- the largest gift in the University's history.
Harrison's combined donations now total more than $150 million.
The recent donation from his estate comes in the form of a $64 million endowment and an additional $50 million trust fund that the University will inherit in 25 years.
The endowment is directed at the Law School, the Medical School, the athletic department and the special collections library.
The Law School will receive $34.8 million of the endowment, which will generate a yearly allotment of about $1.7 million with interest.
"What this money allows us to do is create a handful of very well-endowed, chaired professorships so we can compete with Harvard and the top law schools," said Mike Marshall, University Law School communication director.
The Medical School's $20.3 million endowment will be used similarly, and also will go to a fund to reward exceptional professors in the school.
A smaller amount, $3.1 million, is set for the Mary and David Harrison Institute for American History, Literature and Culture, a part of the expanded special collections library currently under construction in front of Alderman Library.
The remainder of the fund goes to the Athletic Department.
It has not yet been specified how the $50 million trust fund and its interest will be used.
"That could certainly benefit anything at the University, including undergraduate programs," University spokeswoman Louise Dudley said.
President John T. Casteen III said the gift can do little to offset the ongoing budget crisis.
"These gifts are endowment gifts and gifts for capital construction projects, so they do not bear directly on the current budget situation," Casteen said. "Very few large gifts are available for immediate expenditure to alleviate a state budget problem."
The gift will instead "become part of the University's longer-term future income," Casteen added.
Harrison's past donations already have made an impact on the University.
The playing field at Scott Stadium and the Law School grounds are named after Harrison, who also established professorships in law, medicine and archaeology, and funded undergraduate research grants that now are known as the Harrison Awards.
Harrison died June 8, 2002, at the age of 85.
Due to the nature of the endowment, it is clear that Harrison's estate will continue to impact the University for many years to come.
"He has been extraordinarily generous," Dudley said.
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