Largest gift to the university will support the effort
FRANKFORT, Ky. -- As President Barack Obama unveils an economic stimulus plan to invest more than $50 billion in renewable energy research, Gov. Steve Beshear is looking to the University of Louisville to take the lead in that arena. At a press conference today, the governor announced he is entering into a memorandum of agreement with UofL to operate Kentucky’s Center for Renewable Energy Research and Environmental Stewardship.
The governor and UofL President James Ramsey also announced that the largest individual donation to UofL or any public Kentucky university will support the center's work. UofL engineering and business alumnus Henry Conn and his wife, Rebecca, have pledged more than $20 million to the university to support the work of the center in the J.B. Speed School of Engineering. The center will be named the Conn Center for Renewable Energy Research and Environmental Stewardship in their honor.
“We were looking for one cause to significantly support in an effort to make the needle move, to really make a difference,” Henry Conn said. “The vision of the Conn Center at the J.B. Speed School of Engineering, and for a cause that I had advocated in all of my recent writings, speeches and a book in process, was so compelling that we bought in full-bore. Obviously, the fact that Speed was the genesis for all of our success in this world didn't hurt, either.”
Beshear sees the center as an opportunity to harness the various progressive efforts on renewable energy in the commonwealth for a greater objective.
"The center achieves several objectives laid out in my administration’s strategic energy plan for Kentucky, including creating higher quality jobs, identifying methods that allow citizens to be more energy efficient and helping our nation become energy secure,” Beshear said. “And we are truly grateful to have the support of Henry and Rebecca Conn in our endeavor."
The Kentucky General Assembly created the center in 2007to provide leadership, research, support and policy development in renewable energy. A governor-appointed board will set priorities for renewable energy research. The board will be chaired by Len Peters, secretary of the Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet.
UofL has the expertise needed to address usage of wind, solar, geothermal, and biomass resources, energy storage, and the logistics and distribution challenges for new energy sources, said J.B. Speed School of Engineering Dean Mickey Wilhelm.
The center’s mission will include promoting partnerships among the state's colleges and universities, private industry and nonprofit organizations to actively pursue federal research and development resources that are dedicated to renewable energy.
"As the primary sponsor of legislation that created the Center, I am incredibly pleased to have UofL take the lead on research launching Kentucky to the national forefront of renewable energy and environmental stewardship," said State Rep. Rocky Adkins. "The General Assembly passed comprehensive energy policies that made Kentucky ready to meet the Conns' vision, and I have no doubt UofL will deliver on the expectations of the Governor, General Assembly, and the Conns for innovation and job creation to benefit every Kentuckian."
“Our commitment to pioneering research leading the United States to energy independence is equal to our quest to find the answers to cancer at the James Graham Brown Cancer Center," Ramsey said. "We have attracted researchers who have invented the vaccine for cervical cancer and have 20-plus cancer-curing drugs in the pipeline. We'll put our shoulders to the task of providing clean, affordable energy for the future in the same, innovative fashion.”
Beshear and Ramsey credited the Conns for their generosity and vision in supporting the creation of the center at UofL.
“It is humbling to be entrusted with their confidence,” Ramsey said.
A Louisville native, Conn earned his bachelor's and master's degrees in mechanical engineering and his master of business administration degree from UofL. He is on the Industrial Board of Advisors for the J.B. Speed School of Engineering, which chose him as its 2002 Alumni Fellow and has honored him with its Distinguished Alumnus Award and Professional Award in Engineering.
Conn is a senior executive adviser for corporations around the world. Formerly he was vice president of the global management consulting firm A.T. Kearney Inc. He co-authored the books "Workplace 2000: The Revolution Reshaping American Business" and "Maximum Performance Management: How to Manage and Compensate People to Meet World Competition."
He began his career with Ford, starting as a student trainee and advancing to direct construction and startup of the Kentucky Truck Plant, where he later served as manufacturing engineering manager. He left Ford to become corporate director of manufacturing engineering services at Allis-Chalmers in Milwaukee and general manager of the service division of Siemens-Allis Inc. in Atlanta. Conn was corporate vice president for productivity at TRW Inc. in Cleveland before joining with ex-National Football League player Fran Tarkenton to form the consulting firm Tarkenton, Conn and Co.
Rebecca Logsdon Conn is a Louisville native and graduate of Louisville Male High School. She is active in many outdoor activities and a seasoned world traveler, having visited five continents.
Married 47 years, the Conns live in Atlanta, Ga. They support a number of charities including the Georgia Special Olympics, Salvation Army, USO, the March of Dimes, the National World War II Museum and Children’s Tumor Foundation. The Conns established a perpetual fellowship for graduate students pursuing a master’s degree or doctorate in engineering at UofL.
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Listen to Gov. Beshear's remarks at the press conference. (MP3)