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Gift endows professorship in Integrative Environmental Science
The $1 million gift completes Eugene and Ronnie Isenberg's vision to develop collaborative teaching and research programs focused on technology innovation driven by interdisciplinary work.
Eugene and Ronnie Isenberg have made a $1 million gift to the University of Massachusetts Amherst to establish the Eugene M. and Ronnie Isenberg Professorship in Integrative Environmental Science in the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics.
The professorship completes the Isenbergs’ vision of creating three professorships in management, engineering and the natural sciences to develop collaborative teaching and research programs focused on technology innovation driven by interdisciplinary work in these areas. UMass Amherst and the Isenbergs believe that technology innovation can be moved forward most quickly and effectively through systematic, interdisciplinary scientific effort.
“We are delighted to again invest in UMass Amherst as it becomes a leader in integrative studies and the creation of systematic, cross-disciplinary innovation,” said Eugene Isenberg. “This approach is vital to the future economic success of the region and the nation.”
The endowed professorship will support the research, teaching and special programs of the Eugene M. and Ronnie Isenberg Professorship in Integrative Environmental Science, including curriculum development, interdisciplinary symposia, research projects and other collaborative activities.
This work will build on the Isenberg Program in Innovation and Technology Management that was founded by Soren Bisgaard, Isenberg Professor of Technology Management in the Isenberg School of Management, and Michael Malone, Isenberg Professor of Engineering and dean of the College of Engineering.
“This new professorship offers a much welcome opportunity to expand the Isenberg Program in Innovation and Technology Management to include the natural sciences,” said Bisgaard. “We can now institutionalize a truly unique program to the benefit of UMass Amherst students and the community. We’re extremely grateful to Ronnie and Gene Isenberg for their unwavering support.”
“With the third leg of the stool now in place in our integration of management, science and engineering,” said Malone, “we can create a deeper connection with the College of Natural Science and Mathematics. I know I speak for many students and colleagues when I express my gratitude for the continued generosity and vision of the Isenbergs.”
Eugene Isenberg, a native of Chelsea, Mass., is a 1950 alumnus of UMass Amherst, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in economics. He went on to receive a master’s degree from Princeton University. He is currently Chairman and CEO of Nabors Industries of Houston, a leading oil-and-gas-drilling contractor. The Isenberg School of Management is named in recognition of the Isenberg’s significant contributions toward new facilities and scholarships and their endowment of three professorships.
Isenberg also serves as president of the UMass Amherst Foundation, which leads and supports private fund raising on behalf of the faculty, staff and students of the university. Its volunteer board of directors provides leadership for the development of philanthropic investment in support of the research, teaching and outreach missions of the Amherst campus.
Ronnie Isenberg attended Simmons College and Salem State College, where she graduated with a degree in education. After teaching for several years, she continued to tutor children in public schools. She also worked with blind children when the Isenbergs lived in Bangkok, Thailand. A past president of the American Women’s Club of Bangkok, Ronnie Isenberg’s interests lie in the fields of education and health.