Endowed Chair to Attract Nationally Recognized Scholar |
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Bob and Carol Berry of Sheridan, Wyoming, gifted $1 million to UW (doubled to $2 million through the state match) to attract a nationally recognized scholar in the field of ecology.
Annual income generated by the gift will establish the Robert B. Berry Distinguished Chair in Ecology, with an emphasis on ornithology.
“My goals are to help the university establish a national and international prominence in ecology and to bring under one umbrella the university’s life science programs of biology, zoology, and botany,” says Bob Berry.
A lifelong naturalist and expert falconer, Berry says his family’s gift, with the accompanying state and university funding, will enable UW to lure a “superstar” to head a new graduate program in ecology. That, in turn, can help the university attract top students and more research funds to its life science programs, an
academic area targeted for distinction in UW’s Academic Plan.
The Berrys’ primary interest is wildlife and their habitat. They own and operate Wolf Creek Ranch near Sheridan, 12,000 acres of deeded and government lands. The ranch reflects the couple’s love of nature and respect for the land. Since 1995, the Berrys have placed more than 8,000 acres of their ranch under conservation
easement to protect the land from development in perpetuity.
“If the wildlife has food and protective cover, they thrive,” Bob Berry says. “Once these lands get developed, they’re developed forever and the wildlife disappears. There’s no going back,” he says.
“Bob and Carol Berry love Wyoming and came to the state because of its natural biological diversity and beauty,” says Dennis Knight, a retired UW botany professor who served with Berry as a trustee for the Wyoming chapter of The Nature Conservancy. “Now they are stepping forward to help manage those resources so they will be available for future generations,” Knight adds.
The Berrys have donated more than $1.7 million to UW since 2000.
Photo: Bob Berry
Posted on Thursday, June 08, 2006
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