NASHVILLE, Tenn. ñ The Chancellor of Vanderbilt University will be
appointed to the board of trustees of the Christopher Columbus
Fellowship Foundation, the White House announced.
President Bush intends to appoint Gordon Gee to a six-year term on the
13-member board, which oversees programs to “encourage and support
research, study and labor designated to produce new discoveries in all
fields of endeavor for the benefit of mankind.”
The announcement was made on Friday.
Gee, Vanderbilt Chancellor since 2000, said he took particular pride in
becoming a part of the judging process of the Christopher Columbus
Awards, a competition where teams of middle school students create
innovative solutions to a community problem while embracing science and
technology.
The students converge on Disney World in Orlando, Fla., each year to
compete for U.S. savings bonds and a $25,000 grant to implement their
idea.
“I am grateful for the opportunity to help nurture some of the most
brilliant and creative minds,” Gee said. “The Christopher Columbus
Foundation nurtures, recognizes and rewards innovation, which is
essential for the future success of this country.”
The New York-based Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation was
created in 1992 by Congress, endowed through surcharges to the sale of
three specially minted coins sold by the U.S. Mint from August 1992 to
June 1993. The foundation seeks to nurture and recognize pioneering
individuals and programs which reflect the visionary spirit and
pioneering heritage of explorer Christopher Columbus.
Other annual awards programs by the foundation include the $50,000
Frank Annunzio Award for innovations which impact science and
technology, and four $2,500 Homeland Security Awards to individuals or
companies making contributions to homeland security.
The board of trust evaluates hundreds of entries for each of its programs.
Gee is one of the most experienced chief executives in higher
education, having served as president of Brown University, The Ohio
State University, the University of Colorado and West Virginia
University. A joint degree recipient in law and education from Columbia
University, Gee is also a professor of law at Vanderbilt.
Media contact: Jim Patterson, (615) 322-NEWS
jim.patterson@vanderbilt.edu