Administrators sam_webmaster Posted February 29, 2012 Administrators Share Posted February 29, 2012 Ahmet Ertegun and widow Mica to fund graduate scholarships in biggest donation Oxford University has announced a gift amounting to £26m from the late founder of Atlantic Records and his widow. Some of the fortune left by Ahmet Ertegun – who helped shape the careers of Led Zeppelin, John Coltrane, Eric Clapton, Ray Charles, and the Rolling Stones, to name a few – will go to a major new graduate scholarship programme and represents the biggest donation for humanities students in the university's 900-year history. Ertegun and his widow, Mica, will give their name to a programme offering 15 scholarships a year and will eventually be endowed in perpetuity to award at least 35 graduate humanities scholarships annually. The gift will ultimately amount to £26m, the university said. Friends of Ertegun's, including Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones and the promoter Harvey Goldsmith, were expected at the British Academy in London on Wednesday where the announcement was being made. Lord Patten, the chancellor of the University of Oxford, said: "Through the generosity of Mica Ertugun, the best humanities graduate students in the world will have the opportunity, in perpetuity, to undertake high-quality research, to interact with other fine minds, and to increase the sum of human knowledge and understanding. "This kind of support for postgraduates is vital for the future of research and human understanding, and vital for the future of great universities like Oxford. It allows us to ensure that the very best minds are supporting the university's research endeavour now and will be the cutting edge researchers of the future." Mica Ertegun, a New York-based interior designer, said: "For Ahmet and for me, one of the great joys of life has been the study of history, music, languages, literature, art and archaeology. "I believe it is tremendously important to support those things that endure across time, that bind people together from every culture, and that enrich the capacity of human beings to understand one another and make the world a more humane place. "My dream is that, one day, Ertegun scholars will be leaders in every field – as historians and philosophers, as archaeologists and literary scholars, as writers and composers, as statesmen and theologians." Oxford's vice-chancellor, Andrew Hamilton, said: "This is a significant moment for the study of the humanities and the largest donation specifically for the humanities in the 900-year history of Oxford. "At a time when, in the UK, government support for the humanities is under intense pressure, vision and generosity like this is going to be what saves the field for future generations." All recipients of the award will get exclusive use of the Mica and Ahmet Ertegun House for the Study of the Humanities, a five-storey building in the heart of Oxford. http://www.guardian....nder-26m-oxford http://www.ox.ac.uk/...012/122902.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Knebby Posted February 29, 2012 Share Posted February 29, 2012 Wow ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators sam_webmaster Posted February 29, 2012 Author Administrators Share Posted February 29, 2012 Led Zep concert boosts scholarships Mica Ertegun, pictured with John Paul Jones, has given the biggest ever donation to humanities at Oxford (UKPA) - Oxford University has been handed £26 million to create scholarships for humanities students - with help from Led Zeppelin's comeback concert. The donation, made by Mica Ertegun, widow of Atlantic Records founder Ahmet Ertegun, is understood to be one of the biggest in Oxford's 900-year history. It will be used to set up the Mica and Ahmet Ertegun Graduate Scholarship Programme in the Humanities. The scheme will see students worldwide compete for an award to study subjects including literature, history, music, art history, Asian studies, Middle Eastern studies and archaeology. There will be 15 scholarships to start with, and eventually at least 35 will be awarded each year. As founder of Atlantic Records, Ahmet Ertegun was responsible for helping to shape the careers of musicians such as Eric Clapton, Ray Charles, the Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin. At an event announcing the donation, it was revealed that Led Zeppelin's 2007 comeback concert at the 02 in Greenwich, London, had helped lead to the creation of the Ertegun Scholarships. The concert, staged in memory of Mr Ertegun, who died in 2006, was the first time the band had played together for 19 years. More than 20 million fans from across the globe rushed to register for the £125 tickets, which were allocated by lottery. It is understood that profits from the show went to the Ahmet Ertegun Education Fund, which pays for student scholarships to universities in the UK, US and Turkey. Oxford vice-chancellor Andrew Hamilton said: "The money from the concert was a magnificent moment that allowed the funding, a number of years ago, of both undergraduate and postgraduate scholarships." That was the start of a partnership was has led to the creation of the Ertegun Scholarships, which are due to the "immense generosity" of Mrs Ertegun, he added. Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones said he was "very proud" that the concert had led to the new programme. The donation, which will ultimately be worth more than £26 million, is the biggest made to humanities students in Oxford's history, and understood to be one of the largest generally. Copyright © 2012 The Press Association. All rights reserved. Event Producer Harvey Goldsmith, Mica Ertegun, Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones and Lord Chris Patten, The Chancellor of the University of Oxford, at the launch of The Mica and Ahmet Ertegun Graduate Scholarship Programme Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melcórë Posted February 29, 2012 Share Posted February 29, 2012 That's awesome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolfman Posted February 29, 2012 Share Posted February 29, 2012 Just saw this. Too cool! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zeplives66 Posted February 29, 2012 Share Posted February 29, 2012 Thats Fantastic!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators sam_webmaster Posted February 29, 2012 Author Administrators Share Posted February 29, 2012 Music mogul's widow donates £26m to Oxford University for scholarships Led Zeppelin reunion concert in 2007 led to whole lotta largesse from Mica Ertegun, whose husband co-founded Atlantic Records It was the reunion of all reunions, one which the mighty Led Zeppelin rehearsed for two months to get right. And on Wednesday it emerged that it also laid the unlikely seeds for one of the largest donations given to the study of humanities in the UK. The 2007 concert at the O2 arena was the start of a relationship between Oxford University and Mica Ertegun, widow of Ahmet Ertegun – founder of Atlantic Records and mentor to some of the most significant musicians of the 20th century – in whose memory the concert was staged. It was announced on Wednesday that £26m, a significant chunk of the Ertegun fortune, was being offered to Oxford to create graduate scholarships in perpetuity in fields across music, literature, history, archaeology and art history. Andrew Hamilton, Oxford's vice-chancellor, called it an act of "immense generosity." He added: "This is without question the largest donation in the history of Oxford for the support of humanities students and for that it is a magnificent example of visionary philanthropy, one that will dramatically affect the way in which students can come to carry out graduate studies." Ertegun died in 2006 and the next year Led Zeppelin reformed to play the now famous concert in his honour. Some of the proceeds went to Ertegun's alma mater, St John's in Annapolis in Maryland, and some went to Oxford. That was the start of a relationship between the English university and Mica Ertegun. "We just kept in contact and I thought the money should stay here," she said. "Ahmet was highly educated, he went to a college where you really had to read everything and his passion was music." Ertegun was central to the discovery and development of some of the biggest music names of the last century, from Ray Charles to Aretha Franklin to Otis Redding. As the gift was announced, guests included John Paul Jones, Led Zeppelin's bass player, who said Ertegun was both terrifically erudite and "more rock'n'roll than all of us put together. He was an inspiration to us and he was an innovator". Jones admitted his memory of the 2007 concert was "a bit of a blur." He told the Guardian: "We got through it. It wasn't just about playing the songs again, it had to sound as if we'd just come off a two-year tour and perform them to a particular degree. It took quite a lot of psyching up and an awful lot of rehearsal – about two months – and for this to come out of it makes it even more worth it. It's really gratifying." The money will create an initial 15 Mica and Ahmet Ertegun scholarships a year and will eventually be endowed to award an annual total of 35. They will come with exclusive use of an extremely nice five-storey Georgian house on St Giles in Oxford. Hamilton said it was hugely important for Oxford and the humanities generally. "It is important of course in its great generosity but also in its timing, because the hard truth is that funding for graduate studies is one of the biggest challenges facing research-intensive universities like Oxford. In the field of the humanities, the challenge can be especially tough. "The best research students from around the world will increasingly go elsewhere unless we in Oxford and more broadly in the UK are competitive in the global market for their talents." He said the Ertegun scholarships would complement existing Rhodes and Clarendon scholarships and "be a beacon and a model for the future". Lord Patten, Oxford's chancellor, said the scholarships were something very rare in terms of their "scope and vision". Asked if Oxford was the most deserving recipient, he said: "If you're asking whether I think Oxford is a great enough university to attract generosity on this scale, the answer is unequivocally: 'It is.' " He said Oxford was one of the best universities in the world for the teaching and study of the humanities. "We're generally recognised as being top of the league. If not Manchester City, then maybe Manchester United." Other guests at the British Academy in London, where the announcement was made, were the promoter Harvey Goldsmith – who organised the 2007 concert – and Melvyn Bragg, who made a spirited call for the importance of the humanities to be more recognised. He said we were constantly told we are living in age of science but "while science exemplifies the great reach of reason, the humanities, I would claim, dig deeper". Bragg said they "bring us an enlarging awareness of what it is to be fully human". He added: "We're now in an era of the pursuit of total knowledge. Scholarship rules. And to have such a magnificent endowment to push that forward is a real privilege." Ertegun died aged 83 after a fall backstage at a Rolling Stones concert. His death was mourned throughout the music industry. Adam Sweeting began his Guardian obituary with the sentence: "The word 'legend' is bandied about liberally in the sphere of popular music, but it is a term that can truthfully be used to describe Ahmet Ertegun, the co-founder of Atlantic Records." He began the label in 1947 and signed some amazing talent, launching the careers of some of the biggest of all musical names. Mica Ertegun said she too had a dream "that, one day, Ertegun scholars will be leaders in every field – as historians and philosophers, as archaeologists and literary scholars, as writers and composers, as statesmen and theologians". http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2012/feb/29/mica-ahmet-ertegun-scholarships-oxford-university?newsfeed=true Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Walter Posted February 29, 2012 Share Posted February 29, 2012 Very cool indeed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuperDave Posted February 29, 2012 Share Posted February 29, 2012 Definitely a great thing. Some charities actually do great work and the money goes where it should be going!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FireOpal Posted February 29, 2012 Share Posted February 29, 2012 Over U.S.$41 million, wow - very cool. Lovely to see JPJ too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rumpeller Posted February 29, 2012 Share Posted February 29, 2012 What a fantastic woman Mica is. It's so nice to hear about good people in the world. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrzej Posted February 29, 2012 Share Posted February 29, 2012 Mica Ertegun: 'Should I buy diamonds instead?' http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/rockandpopmusic/9114084/Mica-Ertegun-Should-I-buy-diamonds-instead.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrzej Posted February 29, 2012 Share Posted February 29, 2012 Funding announcement http://www.ox.ac.uk/subsite/funding_announcement/funding_announcement/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZosofanCMR Posted March 1, 2012 Share Posted March 1, 2012 This is too cool! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators sam_webmaster Posted March 1, 2012 Author Administrators Share Posted March 1, 2012 Rock group funds stairway to academic heaven By Reg Little LEGENDARY rock band Led Zeppelin have helped secure one of the biggest gifts to Oxford University in its 900-year history. Money from the band’s comeback concert at London’s O2 Arena is to help fund a major scholarship programme and new humanities centre in St Giles. And concert money will form part of a donation amounting to £26m from Mica Ertegun, the widow of the founder of Atlantic Records. She is to donate a large part of the fortune left by her husband Ahmet Ertegun – who helped shape the careers of Led Zeppelin, Eric Clapton, Ray Charles, and the Rolling Stones – after Led Zeppelin suggested giving money from their concert to an educational establishment. Having ignored multi-million pound offers to reform for more than 20 years, Led Zeppelin played a one-off show in 2007 to honour Mr Ertegun, with rock’s most eagerly awaited reunion attracting 20 million requests for tickets. Yesterday it was announced that Mr Ertegun’s Romanian-born widow is to fund the Mica and Ahmet Ertegun Graduate Scholarship Programme in Humanities at Oxford. One of Led Zeppelin’s three surviving members, John Paul Jones, attended the launch of the scheme in London. All recipients of the new Oxford scholarship will get exclusive use of the Mica and Ahmet Ertegun House for the Study of the Humanities, a four-storey Georgian building in St Giles, currently used as university offices, which is being completely refurbished. The programme will initially offer 15 scholarships a year and will eventually be endowed in perpetuity to award at least 35 graduate humanities scholarships annually. Mrs Ertegun said: “The concert cost an enormous amount of money to stage. “Afterwards they came to me and said it had made some money and I should do something in memory of my husband.” Band members urged her to put the money into an educational institution. Mrs Ertegun, one of the world’s foremost interior designers, decided that Oxford University should not only benefit from the concert, but also a significant share of her husband’s fortune. She said: “For Ahmet and for me, one of the great joys of life has been the study of history, music, languages, literature and art. “I am so proud of the scholarship programme at Oxford. I intend that it provides an enduring inspiration for brilliant and enthusiastic students from all over the world. “My dream is that one day Ertegun Scholars will be leaders in every field, as historians, writers, composers, statesmen and literary scholars.” Oxford’s vice-chancellor Andrew Hamilton said: “This is the largest donation specifically for the study of humanities in the 900-year history of Oxford. At a time when in the UK government support for the humanities is under intense pressure, vision and generosity like this is going to be what saves the field for future generations.” Led Zeppelin bassist and keyboard player John Paul Jones said he was “very proud” that the concert had led to the new programme. The son of a Turkish diplomat, Mr Ertegun, signed Led Zeppelin to Atlantic in the late 1960s after hearing a demo. http://www.oxfordmai...cademic_heaven/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slave to zep Posted March 1, 2012 Share Posted March 1, 2012 very proud to be a zep fan right now so lovely to hear that there are still generous people in the world, especially rich people. mrs ertegun and led zeppelin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Magic Fills the Air Posted March 2, 2012 Share Posted March 2, 2012 I saw this reported in the Guardian yesterday. At last some good news for higher education in the UK. It's nice to see the Humanities getting the money too. Mrs Ertegun, the band and everyone involved should be very proud of themselves. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strider Posted March 2, 2012 Share Posted March 2, 2012 An friend at Oxford e-mailed me the news...I was STUNNED at the amount. That is a lot of money. Thanks for posting all the articles, Sam. It's nice to see Led Zeppelin coverage in the mainstream media that doesn't reference drugs and mud sharks. Wonder if Oxford will start offering a Led Zeppelin course...a degree in Zeppology? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kenog Posted March 3, 2012 Share Posted March 3, 2012 All photos copyright of Getty Images Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pagefan55 Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 I wonder how large Oxford's endowment is -- Harvard's is now about 33 billion dollars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuperDave Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 I wonder how large Oxford's endowment is -- Harvard's is now about 33 billion dollars. Wow that is huge to say the least!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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