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Detroitman
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Username: Detroitman

Post Number: 889
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Posted on Sunday, January 08, 2006 - 10:13 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/cgi-bin/article.pl?articleId=28576
CCS gets $50 million from Ford estate
Gift from Josephine Ford will be added to endowment
By Sherri Begin
• January 09, 2006


In one of the largest gifts ever given to a U.S. private arts college, the College for Creative Studies is the beneficiary of a $50 million bequest from the late Josephine Ford.


President Richard Rogers said the college, celebrating its centennial this year, will add the gift to its current $12 million endowment to provide more student financial aid, to increase the number of full-time faculty and to create new local and international programs.
“Creativity is being recognized now as incredibly important to economic development, and to maintaining the strengths of our cities and our national economy,” Rogers said.

“What we do is not necessarily well-understood, but it’s becoming very important.”


CCS is a private, four-year college that offers undergraduate degrees in 11 studio-based fine arts majors, but is best known for its vehicle design programs and claims to have placed more design graduates in the automotive industry than any other school.


The Detroit-based school “has a historic reputation in the field of automotive design,” said Samuel Hope, executive director of the National Association of Schools of Art and Design in Reston, Va.


Prominent automotive alumni include Ralph Gilles, design director, DaimlerChrysler Corp.; Pat Schiavone, design director, cars, North America, Ford Motor Co.; Robert Boniface, director, advanced design, General Motors Corp.; Bruce Campbell, vice president, design, Nissan North America; Joel Piaskowski, chief designer, Hyundai Motor Co. and Kevin Hunter, vice president, design, Calty Design Research, Toyota Motor Corp.


Others include Sam Ajluni, senior vice president and creative director, BBDO Detroit; Jay Shuster, director, creative images, Pixar Animation Studios; and Wendy Froud, a sculptor and doll maker who helped create the Yoda puppet from “Star Wars.”


Ford’s bequest caps decades of support for CCS. The involvement of Ford and her late husband, Walter Buhl Ford II, dates to the early 1950s when he began more than 30 years as board chairman.


“(Josephine Ford) was very much his partner in supporting CCS,” Rogers said.


She donated $20 million to CCS in 1997 for construction of the Walter B. Ford II Building on the college’s Detroit campus. In 2004, she gave another $2 million to fund a campus sculpture garden.


Ford reluctantly agreed to have the garden named after her, but didn’t live to see its final form.


The garden, which includes sculptures on loan from the Detroit Institute of Arts, was completed last fall, following her death in June at 81.


CCS planned to officially announce the bequest last night at the launch of the North American International Auto Show’s press days.


Expected to be on hand for the announcement were board Chairman Keith Crain, chairman of Crain Communications Inc; and trustees Gary Cowger, General Motors Corp. group vice president; Tom LaSorda, CEO and president of Chrysler Group; and James Press, CEO of Toyota Motor Sales USA.


The college’s enrollment has nearly doubled over the past decade, from 760 in 1994 to 1,300 students from 34 states and 18 countries. The school’s fiscal 2006 budget is about $30 million.


The college last year provided educational arts programs to about 3,000 Detroit students.


“We’re looking at opportunities right now to take what CCS does abroad to areas where there are opportunities for design education,” Rogers said. “Josephine Ford’s gift can help with planning of that.”


Those opportunities could include more student exchange programs as well as partnerships with foreign educational institutions to establish CCS programs in other countries, he said.


“We don’t have any specific plans, yet, but we’re hoping to spread the work of CCS well beyond the boundaries of Detroit and the U.S.,” said Rogers.


Josephine Ford’s bequest to CCS is a substantial amount for any nonprofit, said Stacy Palmer, editor of the Chronicle of Philanthropy in Washington.


The challenge for organizations that receive such substantial gifts is to maintain donor momentum, she said.


“What they’ll have to be clear about is what this allows them to do, and why other donors would want to continue to keep giving,” Palmer said.




------------------------------ ------------------------------ --------------------


THE FORD LEGACY


Josephine Ford’s gifts to other local nonprofits include:


Detroit Institute of Arts



$50 million in 2001, as a joint gift with Richard Manoogian, chairman and CEO, Masco Corp.; and A. Alfred Taubman, former chairman of Taubman Centers Inc., to launch a capital campaign for renovation, expansion, endowment and operating costs. The three made another large, unspecified gift last fall.

The Henry Ford
$15 million in 2003 to support the Greenfield Village restoration project.

$2.5 million in 1996 toward a capital campaign.

Henry Ford Health System
$10 million in 1998 to support clinical and technology improvements, community education, and cancer prevention and research under the auspices of the Josephine Ford Cancer Center.

(Message edited by DetroitMan on January 08, 2006)
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Irish_mafia
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Username: Irish_mafia

Post Number: 313
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Posted From: 69.221.68.105
Posted on Monday, January 09, 2006 - 12:28 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Thanks Detroitman.

Very Good News
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East_detroit
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Username: East_detroit

Post Number: 460
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Posted From: 69.212.169.194
Posted on Monday, January 09, 2006 - 12:57 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Fords give them money that they will use to educate foreign designers.

Amazing.
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Gravitymachine
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Username: Gravitymachine

Post Number: 735
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Posted From: 68.255.242.100
Posted on Monday, January 09, 2006 - 1:47 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

the real question is what, if anything, does this mean to the NON-design programs at ccs?
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Smogboy
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Username: Smogboy

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Posted From: 68.84.183.189
Posted on Monday, January 09, 2006 - 2:21 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Amazing. Utterly amazing. Talk about philanthropy to the highest end here. Thank you to the Ford folks for supporting the arts like this.
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Gistok
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Username: Gistok

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Posted on Monday, January 09, 2006 - 2:28 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

From the "new" old Detroit Opera House, to the expanded Orchestra Hall, expanding Art Institute, and now "expanding" (?) CCS, it's nice to see the arts are flourishing in Detroit.

This is great news for the continuing development of Midtown!
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Gistok
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Post Number: 1720
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Posted on Monday, January 09, 2006 - 2:32 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I wish that old fart billionaire William Davidson, supposedly richest man in Michigan, would show some greater generosity towards Detroit. Yeah he's paid for the DSO overseas tours, but that's chump change for him. He's in his 80's, and ain't gonna live forever. Maybe the generosity of the Ford's will inspire him.... (not holding my breath).
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Leoqueen
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Username: Leoqueen

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Posted From: 64.12.116.195
Posted on Monday, January 09, 2006 - 3:11 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Really really good news. I am in shock. Just waiting to see how this gift manifests itself.....
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Sharmaal
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Username: Sharmaal

Post Number: 524
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Posted From: 136.1.1.154
Posted on Monday, January 09, 2006 - 2:26 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Guardian Industries is always listed as a sponsor on Symphony programs. Guardian is owned by Davidson. He has a reputation of being a low-key guy. Maybe he just doesn't want his name attached to the donations, and prefers doing it through his companies.
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Lakesuperior
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Username: Lakesuperior

Post Number: 107
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Posted From: 68.77.170.94
Posted on Monday, January 09, 2006 - 4:20 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

gistok-

i work for one of the nonprofits mentioned above and davidson is a HUGE supporter of us. he does more than you think he does- he's just very quiet about it. he has no desire for attention from his philanthropy. just thought you should know...
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Northend
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Username: Northend

Post Number: 618
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Posted From: 69.212.62.92
Posted on Monday, January 09, 2006 - 4:30 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)


quote:

Fords give them money that they will use to educate foreign designers.

Amazing.




This remark IS awesomely amazing and incredibly stupid.
EastDetroit....pulling one's fingers out of one's ass has and will put you on the same footing as those "foreigners"...then maybe you can show us how good of a designer you are!!
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Lakesuperior
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Username: Lakesuperior

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Posted From: 68.77.170.94
Posted on Monday, January 09, 2006 - 4:44 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

yeah, i should have mentioned that too: east_detroit, that's an extremely idiotic statement.
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Gistok
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Username: Gistok

Post Number: 1722
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Posted From: 4.229.105.140
Posted on Monday, January 09, 2006 - 5:41 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Well as far as I know, Davidson has contributed $20 million to U of M and another $20 million to a university in Israel. He may be contributing to some Detroit causes, but I'm not aware of anything on that scale for Detroit.

Besides the DSO donations, can you cite some other examples?
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Patrick
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Username: Patrick

Post Number: 3185
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Posted From: 65.222.10.3
Posted on Monday, January 09, 2006 - 7:17 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

They will probably get something from William Clay when bites the dust.
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Smogboy
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Posted From: 68.84.183.189
Posted on Monday, January 09, 2006 - 8:12 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Criticizing Bill Davidson for his philanthropy or the lack of is mean and tactless. What he does with his money is his choice. I'm sure there are people much less fortunate than any of us here that can lobby the same criticism at us as well. I am just thankful to ANY and ALL people who donate to worthwhile causes- whether it be $1 or $50 million dollars. Be thankful for ANYONE's generosity.
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Gistok
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Username: Gistok

Post Number: 1723
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Posted From: 4.229.105.140
Posted on Monday, January 09, 2006 - 8:59 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Sorry to disagree Smogboy, but it's not any meaner or tackier than criticizing Ilitch for not spending money to fix up his "Ilitch Holdings". And we do that plenty on this forum.

Hell for all the criticizing we do of Ilitch as a slumlord, at least he gives some semblance of caring about Detroit.

Bill Davidson moved his team and company to the outer burbs, and has given the appearance (to most Detroiters) to not care about Detroit. Not a single performance venue of his is located in Detroit, they're all suburban.

He may care about the city, but he hasn't done that much to show for it like the Ford's, Ilitch's, and Karmanos have. He's not even in the same league!

(Message edited by gistok on January 09, 2006)
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Smogboy
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Post Number: 1539
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Posted From: 68.84.183.189
Posted on Tuesday, January 10, 2006 - 12:48 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Gistok, My thoughts were more towards philanthropy- an outward giving of money towards a worthwhile or charitable organization. I think the criticism of Ilitch here is that his holdings are for him to garner personal wealth later on (whether through turning his properties into parking lots or waiting for the proper price). The money that was given by the Fords, the Karmanos family and I'm sure a litany of other fine people aren't meant to garner anything other than a good feeling for themselves and a hefty tax write off.

Ilitch's caring of Detroit might be the fact that he's waiting to turn a buck on it and then claim the credit for re-habbing an area to which he was the main violator.

That being said, I also know that Ilitch is also generous their charities as well but I'm not going to compare and I think that was the main thrust of my argument. I don't really care where the philanthropic money comes from. If it's done with the right intentions, I don't think anyone should be turning it away.
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Chalu64
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Username: Chalu64

Post Number: 33
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Posted From: 68.40.108.8
Posted on Tuesday, January 10, 2006 - 1:11 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Way to go Ford family!!!!
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Motorcitymayor2026
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Username: Motorcitymayor2026

Post Number: 357
Registered: 10-2005
Posted From: 71.10.63.140
Posted on Tuesday, January 10, 2006 - 1:26 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Think Ford First!

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