Saudi Businessman Donates Millions to Georgetown and Harvard for Study of Islam
By Caryle Murphy
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, December 12, 2005; 5:33 PM
An internationally prominent Saudi businessman said today that he is donating $20 million each to Georgetown and Harvard universities to expand the study of Islam and the Muslim world as part of his philanthropic efforts aimed at promoting interreligious understanding.
Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal, a member of the Saudi royal family, said in a telephone interview from the Saudi capital of Riyadh that he also has established the first two centers for American studies in the Middle East, to be located at universities in Beirut and Cairo.
"As you know, since the 9/11 events, the image of Islam has been tarnished in the West," said Alwaleed, who is chairman of the Riyadh-based Kingdom Holding Company and has extensive business holdings in Europe and the United States.
"We have worked very diligently to bridge the gap between the communities in the United States and Saudi Arabia," Alwaleed added, explaining that the American studies programs in the Middle East will "teach the Arab world about the American situation" and that his gifts to the two American universities will be used "to teach about the Islamic world to the United States."
Alwaleed, one of the world's richest persons, offered a gift of $10 million to the Twin Towers Fund shortly after the terrorist attacks of September 2001.
But then-New York Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani rejected the donation because a press release about the gift quoted the prince as saying that the United States "should re-examine its policies in the Middle East and adopt a more balanced stance towards the Palestinian cause."
The $20 million gift to Georgetown is the second largest single gift ever received by the Jesuit-run university in Washington, officials said. It will be used to expand the activities of its 12-year-old Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding.
"We are deeply honored by Prince Alwaleed's generosity," said university president John J. DeGioia, who met Alwaleed Nov. 7 in a Paris hotel to sign the documents formalizing the donation.
"This gift will deepen Georgetown's ability to advance education in the fields of Islamic civilization and Muslim-Christian understanding and strengthen its presence as a world leader in facilitating cross-cultural and inter-religious dialogue," DeGioia's statement added.
The center will be renamed the Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding, but there are no restrictions on how the $20 million is to be spent, according to center director John L. Esposito.
"A significant part of the money will be used to beef up the think tank part of what the Center does," Esposito said in an interview.
Up to now, he added, the center has not had enough resources "to respond to the tremendous demand that is out there, from the government, church and religious groups, the media and corporations to address and answer issues like, 'What is the actual relationship between the West and the Muslim world? Is Islam compatible with modernization?' Now we can run workshops and conferences [on these subjects] both here and overseas."
"I am pleased to support the Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding. It is vital for the monotheistic religions to reach a common ground of understanding and to gain knowledge about what unites our civilizations," Alwaleed said in a statement released today. "We are determined to build a bridge between Islam and Christianity for tolerance that transcends cultural and geographical boundaries."
His statement added that the $20 million "will endow three faculty chairs, expand programmatic and academic outreach activities, provide new scholarship support for students, broaden opportunities for research and policy discussions and expand library facilities."
Esposito said that for the past year Alwaleed had examined several U.S. universities as possibilities for his donation. He chose Georgetown, Esposito added, "because he knew our track record."
Alwaleed said in the telephone conversation that his $20 million donation to Harvard will fund its Islamic studies program which crosses many disciplines.
Harvard President Lawrence H. Summers expressed gratitude to Alwaleed in a statement today, saying that his gift "will enable us to recruit additional faculty of the highest caliber, adding to our strong team of professors . . . [in] this important area of scholarship."
Alwaleed also donated $5 million to establish the Center for American Studies and Research (CASAR) at the American University in Beirut (AUB) and $10 million to finance construction of the Humanities and Social Sciences (HUSS) building in the new campus of the American University in Cairo (AUC), according to his press release.
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, December 12, 2005; 5:33 PM
An internationally prominent Saudi businessman said today that he is donating $20 million each to Georgetown and Harvard universities to expand the study of Islam and the Muslim world as part of his philanthropic efforts aimed at promoting interreligious understanding.
Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal, a member of the Saudi royal family, said in a telephone interview from the Saudi capital of Riyadh that he also has established the first two centers for American studies in the Middle East, to be located at universities in Beirut and Cairo.
"As you know, since the 9/11 events, the image of Islam has been tarnished in the West," said Alwaleed, who is chairman of the Riyadh-based Kingdom Holding Company and has extensive business holdings in Europe and the United States.
"We have worked very diligently to bridge the gap between the communities in the United States and Saudi Arabia," Alwaleed added, explaining that the American studies programs in the Middle East will "teach the Arab world about the American situation" and that his gifts to the two American universities will be used "to teach about the Islamic world to the United States."
Alwaleed, one of the world's richest persons, offered a gift of $10 million to the Twin Towers Fund shortly after the terrorist attacks of September 2001.
But then-New York Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani rejected the donation because a press release about the gift quoted the prince as saying that the United States "should re-examine its policies in the Middle East and adopt a more balanced stance towards the Palestinian cause."
The $20 million gift to Georgetown is the second largest single gift ever received by the Jesuit-run university in Washington, officials said. It will be used to expand the activities of its 12-year-old Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding.
"We are deeply honored by Prince Alwaleed's generosity," said university president John J. DeGioia, who met Alwaleed Nov. 7 in a Paris hotel to sign the documents formalizing the donation.
"This gift will deepen Georgetown's ability to advance education in the fields of Islamic civilization and Muslim-Christian understanding and strengthen its presence as a world leader in facilitating cross-cultural and inter-religious dialogue," DeGioia's statement added.
The center will be renamed the Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding, but there are no restrictions on how the $20 million is to be spent, according to center director John L. Esposito.
"A significant part of the money will be used to beef up the think tank part of what the Center does," Esposito said in an interview.
Up to now, he added, the center has not had enough resources "to respond to the tremendous demand that is out there, from the government, church and religious groups, the media and corporations to address and answer issues like, 'What is the actual relationship between the West and the Muslim world? Is Islam compatible with modernization?' Now we can run workshops and conferences [on these subjects] both here and overseas."
"I am pleased to support the Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding. It is vital for the monotheistic religions to reach a common ground of understanding and to gain knowledge about what unites our civilizations," Alwaleed said in a statement released today. "We are determined to build a bridge between Islam and Christianity for tolerance that transcends cultural and geographical boundaries."
His statement added that the $20 million "will endow three faculty chairs, expand programmatic and academic outreach activities, provide new scholarship support for students, broaden opportunities for research and policy discussions and expand library facilities."
Esposito said that for the past year Alwaleed had examined several U.S. universities as possibilities for his donation. He chose Georgetown, Esposito added, "because he knew our track record."
Alwaleed said in the telephone conversation that his $20 million donation to Harvard will fund its Islamic studies program which crosses many disciplines.
Harvard President Lawrence H. Summers expressed gratitude to Alwaleed in a statement today, saying that his gift "will enable us to recruit additional faculty of the highest caliber, adding to our strong team of professors . . . [in] this important area of scholarship."
Alwaleed also donated $5 million to establish the Center for American Studies and Research (CASAR) at the American University in Beirut (AUB) and $10 million to finance construction of the Humanities and Social Sciences (HUSS) building in the new campus of the American University in Cairo (AUC), according to his press release.
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