Arthur Gene "Art" Hansen (February 28, 1925 – July 5, 2010)
was a
philanthropist
Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...
and former
chancellor
Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...
of several American universities.
Education and early career
Hansen joined the
United States Marine Corps Reserve
The Marine Forces Reserve (MARFORRES or MFR), also known as the United States Marine Corps Reserve (USMCR) and the U.S. Marine Corps Forces Reserve, is the reserve force of the United States Marine Corps. It is the largest command, by assigned p ...
and was sent to
Purdue University
Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...
as part of the
Navy's V-12 program. He earned his bachelor's degree in electrical engineering in 1946 and returned to Purdue for his master's degree in mathematics in 1948. During this time, he also was a member of the
Phi Gamma Delta fraternity.
For the next ten years, Hansen worked as an aeronautical research scientist at NASA's
Lewis Flight Propulsion Laboratory
NASA John H. Glenn Research Center at Lewis Field is a NASA center within the cities of Brook Park and Cleveland between Cleveland Hopkins International Airport and the Rocky River Reservation of Cleveland Metroparks, with a subsidiary facili ...
, while teaching mathematics at
John Carroll University
John Carroll University is a private Jesuit university in University Heights, Ohio. It is primarily an undergraduate, liberal arts institution accompanied by the John M. and Mary Jo Boler College of Business. John Carroll has an enrollment of 3 ...
and
Baldwin–Wallace College
Baldwin Wallace University (BW) is a private university in Berea, Ohio. It was founded in 1845 as Baldwin Institute by Methodist businessman John Baldwin. The school merged with nearby German Wallace College in 1913 to become Baldwin-Wallace ...
. Hansen received his doctorate in mathematics from
Case Institute of Technology
Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) is a Private university, private research university in Cleveland, Cleveland, Ohio. Case Western Reserve was established in 1967, when Western Reserve University, founded in 1826 and named for its location i ...
in 1958. Hansen also holds several honorary degrees.
In 1959, Hansen joined the faculty of the
University of Michigan
, mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth"
, former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821)
, budget = $10.3 billion (2021)
, endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...
, where he taught and wrote two textbooks about
fluid mechanics
Fluid mechanics is the branch of physics concerned with the mechanics of fluids ( liquids, gases, and plasmas) and the forces on them.
It has applications in a wide range of disciplines, including mechanical, aerospace, civil, chemical and ...
, despite never having taken a formal class on the subject. He later rose to chairman of the university's mechanical engineering department.
At
Georgia Tech
The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part of ...
, Hansen served as dean of engineering and, from 1969 to 1971, president of the Institute. New facilities for chemistry, civil engineering, physics, and student activities were built during his presidency.
Later career
He accepted the position of president at
Purdue University
Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...
from 1971 to 1982, the first Purdue alumnus to do so. Following the late-1960s wave of student unrest, Hansen worked to improve the students' confidence in the university administration. He often hosted open events at his house near the campus, and in 1975 a state law added a student member to the board of trustees. Hansen responded to inflation and state budget cuts by implementing several long-term private fundraising initiatives. These included a newspaper for alumni and parents of students, a phonathon, and a President's Council of donors with which to discuss university matters. These measures helped fund the construction of new buildings for agriculture, athletics, engineering, life sciences, nursing, psychology, and technology.
In 1982, Hansen left Purdue to become chancellor of the
Texas A&M University System
The Texas A&M University System is a state university system in Texas and is one of the state's six independent university systems.
The Texas A&M University System is one of the largest systems of higher education in the United States, with a bu ...
. He was an advocate of increased minority recruitment and worked to improve the stature of
Prairie View A&M University, a historically-black member of the Texas A&M System. Several high-profile academics—including three Nobel laureates—joined the Texas A&M faculty during Hansen's chancellorship. The university system's mission expanded during this time to include programs to help inventors, entrepreneurs, and elementary and secondary school administrators. Hansen left this post in 1986 to become the director of research of the
Hudson Institute and an educational consultant until his retirement.
After his retirement, Hansen made his home in Zionsville, Indiana, and then in Fort Myers, Florida, where he died on July 5, 2010.
Legacy
The Arthur G. Hansen Life Sciences Research Building on the Purdue University campus was named in honor of Hansen. On September 24, 2002, Hansen donated US$1.8 million to Purdue for the construction of a
proscenium theater named after his wife, Nancy Tucker Hansen, who was a writer and a teacher and who died the following year.
[
] The theater, part of
Yue-Kong Pao
Sir Yue-Kong Pao CBE JP (; 10 November 1918 — 23 September 1991), is the founder of Hong Kong's Worldwide Shipping Group which in the 20 years from purchasing its first used ship in 1955 became by far the largest shipping company in the w ...
Hall of Visual and Performing Arts, seats about 300 people and opened its doors in 2006.
See also
*
History of Georgia Tech#Rapid turnover
References
Works cited
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hansen, Arthur Gene
1925 births
2010 deaths
Baldwin Wallace University faculty
Case Western Reserve University alumni
Chancellors of Texas A&M University System
John Carroll University faculty
Presidents of Georgia Tech
Presidents of Purdue University
People from Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin
People from Zionsville, Indiana
Purdue University alumni
United States Marine Corps officers
University of Michigan faculty
Writers from Indiana
Writers from Wisconsin
20th-century American philanthropists
Military personnel from Wisconsin