Monmouth College

David Byrnes '72

Now, as the college moves closer to breaking ground for the $40 million Center for Science and Business, Byrnes has reaffirmed his commitment by increasing what was already the lead gift for the project in order to successfully complete a challenge grant made by a board colleague. Completion of the challenge had the effect of adding $6 million in additional funds to the building campaign.

“The challenge had to be met by June 30,” Byrnes explained, “and we were thrilled to be able to join several other committed trustees and leadership donors in making sure that this generous challenge gift was secured. The gift was not only about the potential to raise more funds for the building. It was also an opportunity for the trustees and the president to reaffirm our leadership and vision for Monmouth’s future.”

The challenge, which was pledged anonymously, promised a 50-percent match for all new gifts to the building by June 30, up to a total of $4 million. The goal of the challenge, to raise $6 million in new funds, was to ensure that ground could be broken for the 136,000-square-foot facility this summer, allowing the building to be ready for occupancy by the fall of 2013.

Byrnes, who envisions the building as a first step toward a new era of academic excellence at the college, said he is gratified that this belief is shared by fellow trustees who made significant gifts—many of them second gifts—toward the fulfillment of the challenge. He noted that 100 percent of the board has made a financial commitment toward the building campaign. “These individuals have come forward without hesitation,” he said. “That demonstrates there is true enthusiasm for seeing our vision of excellence fulfilled.”

He said he is particularly gratified by unanimous support from the college’s leadership, acknowledging major gifts from board vice chair Bill Trubeck ’68, past chair David Bowers ’60, past vice chair Walter Huff ’56, and praising the commitment of President Mauri Ditzler, who was “among the first to step forward with a significant gift to start the momentum towards meeting this challenge gift.”

Regarding his decision to support the project, Ditzler said, “I regularly tell potential donors that contributing to Monmouth is fulfilling because it helps young people pursue a dream. By contributing to the challenge, I experienced first-hand exactly what I have been preaching. I derived a very special sense of purpose in supporting a project and a college that will create a better world for my grandchildren.”

“Completing the challenge is an important project in its own right,” said Karen Chism, a member of the board’s executive committee, “but its real significance lies in its launching a college-wide drive toward academic innovation and distinction as a national liberal arts college.” Chism and her husband, Stan, a 1963 MC graduate, have long been generous donors to initiatives that strengthen the college’s academic excellence.

Byrnes believes that in an increasingly complex globalized economy, scientists and technologists will need to have a basic understanding of business and marketing, while business professionals will need to understand the science behind product development and electronic communication.

“By having a major building on campus designed to specifically facilitate discussion and collaboration among students and faculty from a wide variety of disciplines,” he explained, “we are sending a message to students and parents that Monmouth is an innovator in liberal arts education and has an eye on the future success of its graduates.”

Ground will soon be broken for the facility, which will be built in the 700 block of East Broadway, just south of Archer Ave. The college is planning a cornerstone ceremony for the building on Aug. 20 to coincide with Matriculation Day activities. A blog will keep track of the building progress.