Peter Nolan ’80 and his wife Stephanie Nolan ’84 donated an undisclosed amount to endow the directorship of the Charles Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management in September, University officials said this week.The alumni couple gave the gift in honor of Peter’s father, David Nolan ’49.After the donation, Chair of the Dyson School Prof. Loren Tauer, applied economics and management, was named the first David J. Nolan Director of the Dyson School.“We are honored to support the directorship of Loren Tauer as he continues to lead one of Cornell’s most nationally venerated programs,” Peter Nolan said in a press release.The exact amount of the endowment has not been announced publicly, according to Kathryn Boor, dean of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.“Typically for an endowment of a directorship, $3 to $5 million is given,” Tauer said. Boor confirmed that this was the typical range, and said that the donation would allow the director more flexibility in offering student services.“This generous gift allows some creativity on the part of the director to create some new opportunities for the students,” Boor said, though she added that “specific plans are still to be developed.”“I would like to see [the money] be used to enhance the student experience by, for example, enhancing career services or adding extra sections to classes,” she said.Peter Nolan has served as a member of the Board of Trustees since 2004 and, along with his wife, has endowed other Cornell scholarships, according to a University press release. David Nolan has served as a member of the CALS Advisory Council and the Cornell University Council.“Given the College’s and Dyson School’s emphasis on leadership development, it is highly fitting that Peter’s and Stephanie’s investment in the Dyson School will serve as a lasting legacy of David Nolan’s leadership,” Boor said.The Dyson School has the largest number of undergraduates — 700 — and faculty — more than 40 — of any CALS program. The school specializes in international and sustainable trade and development as well as more traditional business research, according to Tauer.As the David J. Nolan Director of the Dyson School, Tauer’s job is to “oversee teaching, research, public outreach, hiring good faculty, and to help them do their jobs even better,” he said.The endowment of the directorship is the latest in a list of recent developments for the Dyson School.“Getting the school endowed and named, funding for the school, renovations of Warren Hall, the endowing of the directorship … This will continue the momentum, [and] continue to provide an even better education for the students,” Boor said.
Original Author: Duncan Yandell