This week, Sydney Maisel reports that Paul Brooke ’67CC has given $1 million to endow the Paul Brooke Program Chair for Literature Humanities as part of the College’s Core to Commencement Campaign.
Maisel, who oversees class giving for Columbia College classes of 1967 and prior, took note of Brooke. Without solicitation, he had given $10,000 annually for four years and, before that, $5,000 a year since 2008, but had not been in touch with the University in quite some time. Maisel decided to visit Brooke, a partner at the private equity firm venBio, which invests in the life sciences, medicine, and technology. She gave him information on the Core to Commencement Campaign, and it wasn’t long before he committed to this $1 million endowment gift.
“Paul’s generosity proves that alumni, no matter their level of engagement, can find a deep connection with certain fundraising initiatives that spark their interest,” said Maisel, the College’s assistant director for class giving who also works on leadership gifts. “Presenting Core to Commencement to Paul was a ‘perfect storm’ — he had not been involved with the College previously, and his recent professional success allowed him to start thinking differently about philanthropy. Like so many other College alumni, his love for the Core was the driving force behind this gift.”
Core to Commencement set a goal of endowing four program chairs: Contemporary Civilization; Literature Humanities; Music Humanities; and Art Humanities. Each fund — two out of four are now endowed — provides additional salary and programmatic support for the program chair. The Paul Brooke Program Chair for Literature Humanities will serve a three-year term and act as the intellectual and pedagogical leader for the course.
