ANN ARBOR—Joan and Sanford Weill have endowed the deanship at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy with a gift of $3 million.

The gift will establish a discretionary fund that Ford School deans will draw on to fund the school’s highest priorities. In recognition of the donation, the current dean, Rebecca M. Blank, and her successors will carry the title, ” the Joan and Sanford Weill Dean of Public Policy. “

“I am delighted to receive this honor, both for the Ford School and for myself,” Blank said. “The Weills have been extremely generous to the school, first with their support of our new building and now endowing the deanship. The school will benefit from these gifts for years to come and I deeply appreciate the generosity behind them. “

Mr. Weill said, ” Joan and I have the highest regard for President Ford and Mrs. Ford. We are very pleased to make this gift to the Ford School. We see this as one way to demonstrate how much we value their service to society and our long friendship with them. ”

The Weills previously donated $5 million toward the construction of the new home for the Ford School” Joan and Sanford Weill Hall. The 80,000-square-foot building at the southern gateway to campus will be dedicated on Oct. 13, 2006.

“This gift will be of tremendous value to students, faculty and the entire Ford School endeavor,” U-M President Mary Sue Coleman. “The discretionary fund provided by this gift will enable the dean to invest in scholarship, develop educational programs and pursue opportunities that will continue to make the Ford School a leader in the public policy arena. “

The gift is part of The Michigan Difference, U-M’s $2.5-billion fund-raising campaign.

Mr. Weill is chairman emeritus of Citigroup Inc., the diversified global financial services company formed by the merger of Citicorp and Travelers Group.

He is the founder and chairman of the National Academy Foundation, which trains high school students in career-themed academies. He also serves as a director of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, is a current chairman of Carnegie Hall and he co-chaired the fund-raising campaign that raised $60 million for the Hall’s restoration.

He and his wife, Joan, also have been generous benefactors of his alma mater, Cornell University. Both Mr. and Mrs. Weill are actively involved with the Weill Medical College of Cornell University where Mr. Weill serves as the chairman of the Board of Overseers and Mrs. Weill serves as the co-chair of the Women’s Health Symposium. Mrs. Weill, a graduate of Brooklyn College, also is chair of the board of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Foundation, as well as chair of the board of trustees for Paul Smith’s College of the Adirondacks.

The University of Michigan’s Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy was established in 1914 as the Institute for Public Administration and was one of the first programs in the nation to train public managers. The school was named for President Ford in 1999 in recognition of his long and outstanding career of public service.

The school’s curriculum emphasizes the value of social science techniques in understanding, developing, implementing and evaluating public policies. In addition to its regular courses, the school also brings many distinguished leaders to campus to participate in public lectures and conferences on public policy issues.

Public Policy