In Education: Large Gifts for Duke, U. of South Florida
December 8, 2011 | Read Time: 1 minute
Retired hospital executive Jack O. Bovender Jr. and his wife, Barbara, have pledged $25-million to Duke University to benefit health-care and other programs at the Durham, N.C., school, says the Raleigh News & Observer.
Mr. Bovender is a former chairman and CEO of the Hospital Corporation of America and a Duke trustee. The gift will be shared among the Health Sector Management Program at Duke’s Fuqua School of Business, Trinity College of Arts and Sciences, and the School of Nursing.
The gift is the second major contribution to Duke this week, following a $50-million commitment from investment-firm chief Bruce Karsh and his wife, Martha, to create an endowment to support financial aid.
In other education news, the University of South Florida’s medical school will be renamed for Frank and Carol Morsani in recognition of a $20-million donation, the St. Petersburg Times writes.
The gift is the largest in the Tampa university’s history and brings the couple’s total giving to the institution to $43-million.
“This university, we feel, is on the cutting edge of making things happen,” said Mr. Morsani, who made his fortune running a string of car dealerships.
