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Gifts Roundup: $20 Million Donation to Dartmouth College for Math Education

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College

June 1, 2015 | Read Time: 2 minutes

A roundup of notable gifts compiled by The Chronicle:

Dartmouth College

Dorothy Byrne pledged $20 million to Dartmouth College to establish the Jack Byrne Scholars Program in Math and Society, which will include support for undergraduates, a graduate fellowship, and three new mathematics professorships.

Ms. Byrne is the widow of John (Jack) Byrne Jr., a former chief executive of the Geico insurance company. He died in 2013.

The Johns Hopkins University

Jeffrey and Shari Aronson have pledged $10 million to establish the Aronson Center for International Studies and promote closer ties between the university’s graduate and undergraduate international-studies programs. Of the total, $4 million will pay for two new professorships.

Mr. Aronson co-founded Centerbridge Partners, an investment management firm. He graduated from the university in 1980 and is chairman of its Board of Trustees.


Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee

Keith Mardak and Mary Vandenberg gave $5 million to establish MarVan Scholars, a partnership with Milwaukee Public Schools to provide extended-learning day programs.

Mr. Mardak serves on the charity’s Board of Trustees. He is the chairman of the Hal Leonard Corporation, a music-publishing company. Ms. Vandenberg is a consultant and the former vice president for business affairs at Hal Leonard Corporation.

Dallas Museum of Art

John and Jennifer Eagle donated $3 million to renovate the museum’s north entrance.

Mr. Eagle is a car dealer and former trustee of the museum.

Land & Garden Preserve of Mount Desert Island, Maine

David Rockefeller Sr. gave more than 1,000 acres of land, which officials at the nonprofit estimate to be worth $2 million. The Rockefeller family declined through a spokesman to provide a value. Mr. Rockefeller decided to donate the land, which his family has owned for decades, to celebrate his 100th birthday on June 12. The land includes trails through fields and forests, a freshwater pond, and other attractions, which will remain undeveloped and open to the public.


Mr. Rockefeller is a retired chairman of Chase Manhattan Bank and the grandson of John D. Rockefeller, a co-founder of Standard Oil.

To learn about other big donations, see our database of gifts of $1 million or more, which is updated throughout the week.

About the Author

Senior Editor

Maria directs the Chronicle of Philanthropy’s annual Philanthropy 50, a comprehensive report on America’s most generous donors. She writes about wealthy philanthropists, family and legacy foundations, next generation philanthropy, arts organizations, key trends and insights related to high-net-worth donors, and other topics.