Alabama Governor Kay Ivey approved $27 million in Public School and College Authority funding for Auburn University and the Alabama School of Healthcare Sciences.
Auburn received $22 million, and the newly established Alabama School of Healthcare Sciences received $5 million.
“The Public School and College Authority funding allows us to make generational investments in the classrooms that are fostering future generations. There is simply no task more important than equipping our young people with the best opportunities to succeed,” Ivey said. “I am proud to award my alma mater, Auburn University, as well as the Alabama School of Healthcare Sciences funding that will help them prepare our students for promising futures.”
Auburn will use its funding to establish the Kay Ivey Institute for Civic Leadership. University administrators wrote that the institute will “extend Auburn’s commitment to preparing students for lives of character, informed citizenship and responsible leadership, while creating an educational legacy for students, communities and the nation.”
“Gov. Ivey exemplifies the very best of Auburn—strength of character, a deep commitment to service and an abiding love for Alabama and our country,” Auburn President Christopher B. Roberts said.
“It is an extraordinary privilege to recognize her consequential career through an institute dedicated to equipping students to lead with knowledge, integrity and purpose,” Roberts said. “As our nation celebrates 250 years of independence, we can reaffirm the role of higher education in developing not only accomplished graduates, but informed citizens who understand our nation’s history and embrace their responsibilities to its future.”
“The Board of Trustees is deeply appreciative of Gov. Ivey’s extraordinary commitment to Auburn University and her vision for cultivating civic leaders,” said Jimmy Sanford, president pro tempore of Auburn’s board of trustees.
Auburn trustee Jimmy Rane, who chairs the board’s Governmental Affairs Committee, said the institute would honor Ivey’s legacy as a public servant.
“This is a remarkable moment for Auburn University and the state of Alabama,” Rane said.
“I’ve had the privilege of calling Kay Ivey a friend since our days as students at Auburn, and I’ve watched with great admiration as she has devoted so much of her life to serving our state and its people,” Rane said. “I can think of no more fitting way to honor her extraordinary legacy than through an institute dedicated to preparing future generations for lives of responsible citizenship and leadership. The Kay Ivey Institute will embody the values that have long defined Auburn—love of country, strength of character and a commitment to serving something greater than oneself.”
Ivey has awarded more than $1.9 billion in authority funding during her tenure as governor.
