Johns Hopkins School Named for Zanvyl Krieger

The chairman of the Johns Hopkins board of trustees, Morris W. Offit, said the board's decision to name the Zanvyl Krieger School of Arts and Sciences is a "tribute to a generous alumnus and friend."

"I'm very honored, of course," Krieger said after Offit announced the naming at a trustee dinner last weekend. "I do believe the School of Arts and Sciences is the nucleus of the university. I believe that, without a School of Arts and Sciences, all you have is a collection of professional schools."

Krieger made his 1992 pledge in anticipation that it would attract an additional $50 million in other contributions over the next five years, adding, in all, $100 million to the Arts and Sciences endowment. With more than two years remaining, Hopkins has received commitments totalling $87 million in gifts and pledges as a result of Krieger's gift and responses to it from other donors.

Krieger's own $50 million commitment, even without the matching funds from other donors, represents the largest gift ever directed exclusively to a U.S. college or school of arts and sciences, the portion of a university that focuses on the humanities, social sciences and natural sciences.

"The very first time I met Mr. Krieger," said Steven Knapp, dean of the Krieger School, "he mentioned his belief that the School of Arts and Sciences is the core of the university. This gift really ensures that it can continue to play that role. He is giving us the financial stability and flexibility we need to move forward in new directions, while preserving our standards of academic excellence."

The Krieger School is the fourth of Johns Hopkins's eight academic divisions to be named for its founder or for a key benefactor. The others are the Peabody Institute, the Paul H. Nitze School for Advanced International Studies and the G.W.C. Whiting School of Engineering.

Krieger's 1992 commitment was then by far the largest gift in the history of Johns Hopkins and remained a record until last weekend, when Michael Bloomberg, a 1964 graduate and owner of Bloomberg Financial Markets, announced a $55 million pledge.

Bloomberg, chairman of the $900 million Johns Hopkins Initiative fund drive, said that Krieger's generosity had inspired him and raised his sights. Krieger said he was delighted with Bloomberg's commitment. "I congratulate Michael," he said. "It's a great honor to be topped by Michael."

Krieger, a Baltimore native, has been a critical figure in Baltimore-area philanthropy. His interests have included the Kennedy Krieger Institute, the Krieger Eye Institute at Sinai Hospital, Associated Jewish Charities and the Krieger Schechter Day School, and the new American Museum of Visionary Art. Krieger's earlier $7.5 million gift to Hopkins established the Krieger Mind/Brain Institute, an interdisciplinary research center in neuroscience, cognitive psychology and computational neurobiology. He has also created two endowed professorships in the School of Medicine and has also endowed the Krieger Pediatric Center of the Wilmer Eye Institute.

Krieger majored in political science at Johns Hopkins and graduated from Harvard Law School in 1931, embarking on a career that included stints in business, law, real estate development, and investment. He also was a part-owner of both the Baltimore Colts and Baltimore Orioles franchises at times when each was winning its first championship.

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