Georgetown just received $10 million for Holocaust research
The money was donated by a couple in Florida
To the contrary of Georgetown’s reputation for scarce endowments, the university announced that it will be using a generous gift of $10 million donated by a couple from Florida, Norman and Irma Braman, to establish a program dedicated to forensic studying of the Holocaust.
In a university statement, donor Norman Braman said, “I have decided to make this gift, now, and to Georgetown, in part as a sign of my appreciation for the leadership of Pope Francis and the priority he so clearly attaches to fostering closer relations between Jews and Catholics.”
The Braman Endowed Program intends to sponsor the teaching, researching and field study for Georgetown faculty and students, as well as fund a public outreach arm aimed at preventing Holocausts in the future. In addition, the gift aims to fund a professorship, research and public program related to the Holocaust.
The historian and French Roman Catholic priest, Reverend Patrick Desbois, was chosen as the holder of the Braman Endowed Professorship of the Practice of the Forensic Study of the Holocaust and will oversee the execution of the program at Georgetown.
President De Gioia promises that the gift will ensure that studies of the Holocaust will always remain a priority at the university. In that same spirit, on February 29th, Georgetown renamed the Program for Jewish Civilization to the Center for Jewish Civilization that will be committed to teaching multiple perspectives on the Holocaust, such as its consequences and causes.
The program started in 2003 and has since received $10 million in donations from friends and over 500 alumni to ensure its permanence over the years.