Board of Governors member Ernest F. Schaub and his wife, Sandie, recently donated $1 million to the University of New Haven’s science programs.
In an email sent out to the UNH campus Oct. 14, President Steve Kaplan thanked the Schaubs for their gift to the university. The gift will “support the University’s ongoing efforts to expand and enhance science classrooms and laboratories,” he said.
In addition to the $1 million gift from Schaub and his wife, the university also received a $3 million anonymous commitment two years ago, according to Kaplan’s email. This $3 million, along with Schaub’s $1 million, will be used in conjunction to renovate existing campus space and to create state-of-the-art science facilities.
Over the past six years, according to Kaplan, science related majors and minors have increased dramatically. This called for the addition of space for science classrooms and labs so additional buildings were purchased for this project.
“As one solution to meet this need, we purchased a nursing home on the south side of campus near Notre Dame High School, which we will renovate into academic space,” Kaplan said.
Once the renovations are complete, the university plans on moving faculty and programs currently found in Dodds Hall to the new facility. The then vacated parts of Dodds, Kaplan explained, will be converted into science classrooms and laboratories.
According to Kaplan, this endeavor will cost half of what constructing an entirely new science facility would cost—the current plan will cost $18 million, while a new facility would cost roughly $35 million.
Schaub graduated from UNH in 1972, receiving a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Engineering. He went on to receive a Master’s degree in Business Administration from Case Western Reserve University.
According to UNH’s website, Schaub served as president and chief executive officer of EnPro Industries, Inc., a provider of products to industrial and processing industries, until his retirement in 2008.
Schaub’s gift and the anonymous $3 million donation are the only donations for this project as of now.
“We will continue to seek private gifts and grants to fund the project,” said Kaplan. He also mentioned that the university has temporarily invested the $4 million they have already received until work on the project officially begins.
“The sciences here are thriving and there is a great need for laboratories,” Lourdes Alvarez, Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. “Students in the sciences are doing really well, as seen through the different grants they’ve pulled.”
Students are looking forward to the benefits of the generous gift. “Hopefully a genetics lab will be added,” Forensic Science major
