Summary: Villanova University receives $5 million donation for the creation of an ethics center.
Villanova University isn’t kidding about their goal to raise $600 million in their “For the Greater Great: the Villanova Campaign to Ignite Change,” having gained $408 of it already, including most recently a $5 million contribution from alumnus David F and Constance B. Girard-diCarlo. The couple, who also met at the university, has already donated $500,000 to the school in 2008, and for that the student lounge where David proposed to Connie was named after them.
The $5 million will go towards the establishing of the David F. and Constance B. Girard-diCarlo Center for Ethics, Integrity and Compliance. The couple is reacting to the integrity collapse of energy trading company Enron and accounting firm Arthur Anderson, among others.
“Connie and I feel privileged to be in the position to make this gift,” said David. “The people at Villanova have always been extremely helpful to us over the years.
“The focus on the center was chosen by the dean and maybe [Villanova Chairman] Paul Tufano, but we were delighted to have the opportunity because we think it’s important that young people know you don’t have to compromise your values to be successful in the business, law and life. And it’s said that we always see reports in the news media about people who compromised their values or never had them in the first place.”
A statement released by the couple also said, “Adhering to the highest ethical standards in your profession and encouraging others with whom you interact to do the same can and will create a culture that promotes achievement. It is our hope and expectation that this new center will reinforce the importance of fostering an environment based on ethics and integrity not only in law and business but also in life.”
The equation of ethics with success sounds almost Aristotelian, if no Pollyanistic, since it seems to get ahead one must do more than be ethical, which is a given, but also perhaps push the edge and creatively expand beyond expectations.
Nevertheless, David’s 22 year career as managing partner and finally chairman of Blank Rome, followed by his service as Ambassador to Australia, under George W. Bush’s appointment in 2008, followed by a finish with Cozen O’Connor, do bespeak success — so there is that.
Considering the school has received another $5 million in 2012 for the Study of Sports Law, and $1.25 million in 2013 for a center of Entrepreneurship and Innovation, it seems the university has its bases covered, and, while other schools are struggling a bit, they are not.
News Source: Philadelphia Business Journal
