.
12/13/2005, "Saudi Prince Donates $40 Million to Harvard, Georgetown Universities," ABCNews.com, Ahuja
"A Saudi prince has donated $20 million each to Harvard University and
Georgetown University to advance Islamic studies and further
understanding of the Muslim world.
Prince Alwaleed bin Talal Alsaud -- whom Forbes magazine ranks as the
fifth wealthiest person in the world, with assets worth $23.7 billion --
is the nephew of Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah.
"Bridging the understanding between East and West is important for peace
and tolerance," Alwaleed said in a statement released by Harvard.
At Harvard, the money will fund four new senior staff professorships as
well as an endowed chair in the name of the 48-year-old billionaire.
Harvard will also use the funds to begin digitizing historically
significant Islamic texts and materials, and make them available for
research on the internet.
"We are very grateful to Prince Alwaleed for his generous gift to
Harvard," President Lawrence H. Summers said. The gift is considered
one of the 25th largest in university history.
At Georgetown, the money will allow the university to expand its Center
for Muslim-Christian Understanding, which will be renamed "The HRH
Prince Alwaleed bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding."
The center describes itself as the only program of its kind "to build
stronger bridges between the Muslim world and the West."
"This gift will deepen Georgetown's ability to advance education in the
fields of Islamic civilization and Muslim-Christian understanding, and
strengthen its presence as a world leader in facilitating cross-cultural
and inter-religious dialogue," said Georgetown University President
John J. DeGioia.
The gift, which is the second largest in the university's history, will
endow three faculty chairs in Alwaleed's name, provide scholarships,
broaden research, increase policy discussions, and develop better
library facilities."...
.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment