$1.4M gift establishes new professor position

Monday, November 7, 2011

The University will have its first professorship in urban planning, after a $1.4 million gift from a professor to establish the position.

Alan Black, a professor emeritus of urban planning, made the commitment through KU Endowment. He has been a professor in the Department of Urban Planning since 1981.

Additionally, Black has also given $158,000 to create scholarships for urban planning graduate students. Almost $50,000 in scholarships have been given to 12 urban planning students since 1998, a University news release said.

Black credited his frugality for why he’s able to give.

“I never married or had children,” Black said in the release. “I received three inheritances, I live in the same house that I paid off years ago, and I drive a Toyota Celica that I bought new in 1986, and it still runs pretty well. I’ve had the same car for 25 years, so that saves me a lot of money.”

Black has also been active in local issues, serving on several boards. Black was also vocal proponent for the creation of a Lawrence city bus system in the 1990s, which started in December 2000.

In a statement, Chancellor Bernadette Gray-Little praised Black, who has a bachelor’s degree from Harvard, a master’s degree from University of California-Berkeley and a doctorate from Cornell.

“His thoughtful support ensures that academic excellence will continue for future generations of students studying urban planning at KU,” Gray-Little said.

— Edited by Laura Nightengale

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