$5M gift to increase chances for Rowan’s Honors pupils | Rowan Nowadays
John H. Martinson believes in the ability of university honors colleges.
Rowan University’s Honors College or university is a sparkling gem, he claims.
“I’m certainly impressed with the management, college and college students of the Honors Higher education,” says Martinson, a undertaking capitalist and chairman of Martinson Ventures, primarily based in Newtown, Pa.
“I’m eager to speed up that progress.”
Martinson, who has led 80 providers to phenomenal results in the program industry, established Edison Companions in 1986, a business that has elevated 10 partnerships in the monetary technologies, health care IT and interactive internet marketing sectors.
Now, through a present of $5 million, he has put his self-confidence in Rowan’s Honors School.
The gift to the college—which will be renamed the John H. Martinson Honors College—will significantly expand prospects for Rowan Honors college students, according to Honors Dean Lee Talley. Amongst them: extra paid investigate alternatives, spring split service journeys at no expense to students, and funding for review abroad.
“These are items that our college students generally can not even take into consideration simply because of economical constraints,” Talley says. “This will let us to open up up these kinds of activities to a complete new group of Rowan students.
“Mr. Martinson’s present is heading to broaden and deepen absolutely all the things we do.”
A transformational gift for Honors
The gift is transformational for Rowan University and Honors learners, according to Rowan President Ali A. Houshmand. Martinson’s gift is an endowment that will improve to serve Honors college students for a long time to come.
“Like our benefactor, Henry Rowan, John H. Martinson is not an alumnus,” Houshmand claims. “Yet, he has selected to guidance our University and to impression the instruction of some of our most academically gifted students.
“In accomplishing so, he is encouraging to give our Honors college students the schooling and ordeals they need to have to turn out to be impactful intellectual leaders, artistic thinkers and doers, and general public servants. We are grateful for his generous vote of self esteem in our University and, most in particular, our students.”
With an enrollment of 555 pupils, the Honors College is open to academically-determined students of each and every key and tutorial willpower.
To sign up for and continue to be in Honors, pupils ought to apply and manage a 3.5 grade level average efficiently entire 8 Honors courses go to and take part in academic, social/wellness and services situations and adhere to unique ethical requirements and educational codes of conduct.
Comparable to honors faculties at other establishments, the faculty features unique and interdisciplinary system choices, improved discipline-distinct class offerings, precedence registration, and Honors housing.
But the university stands out in that it fosters a various community of “citizen scholars” by acquiring a finding out group focused to building socially and civic-minded leaders engaged in extracurricular things to do and company.
Feel. Prosper. Share.
The college’s motto—“Think. Prosper. Share.”—bolsters that dedication, which focuses on cultivating curiosity and integrity and an understanding and appreciation of other cultures and the arts. The curriculum encourages students, college and employees to collaborate on frameworks for leadership and civic engagement.
That concentrate resonates with Martinson, a veteran of the United States Air Pressure and Distinguished Flying Cross recipient who flew more than 500 combat missions. Chairman of the Martinson Loved ones Foundation in Newtown, Pa., Martinson has supported Rowan courses concentrating on engineering and education and learning since 2006. The Martinson Relatives Basis supplies grants to instructional and charitable courses in the regions of K-12 STEM instruction at 15 universities.
“I’m undoubtedly encouraged by their achievements and prospective,” Martinson states of Rowan Honors learners. “Honors students of course are clever, accomplished, and motivated to be thriving in complicated fields and majors. They have wide passions in other lecturers and disciplines.
“The Honors University has in area innovative courses, exceptional faculty and exceptional facilities. Rowan encourages participation in civic assignments. Pupils will benefit from enrichment packages and experiential mastering from my endowment.”
‘An outstanding, competitive, nurturing environment’
Martinson has adopted Rowan’s advancement intently. Receiver of an honorary Medical professional of Science degree from Rowan in 2011, he satisfied Henry Rowan various times and is amazed with the University’s progress given that 1992, when Rowan gave his transformational $100 million present to the establishment.
For the third consecutive yr, the College has been named the fourth quickest-developing exploration university among the public doctoral establishments, in accordance to the Chronicle of Increased Schooling. It is a person of only 3 establishments in the nation with health care universities granting D.O. and M.D. levels. In 2025, a new Faculty of Veterinary Medicine is anticipated to welcome its first class, pending accreditation. And, before this yr, Rowan formed a partnership with Virtua Wellbeing, South Jersey’s most significant wellbeing procedure, to make the Virtua Well being Faculty of Medication & Health and fitness Sciences of Rowan College.
“My small business is to finance and information modern entrepreneurs. Henry Rowan is the epitome of a position design,” Martinson states.
“Rowan stands out for the growth and expansion of the College and the eyesight of its management,” continues Martinson, who is impressed by the expansion of the Henry M. Rowan School of Engineering, two healthcare faculties, the pending veterinary college and expanded nursing degrees available by the Virtua partnership.
“Very few universities all-around the region are growing at the speed of Rowan. The College results in an excellent, competitive, nurturing surroundings. Rowan is striving for excellence at scale.”
Attracting top rated students
Pupils are acknowledged into the Honors University based on advantage. Rowan students and transfers can implement to be a part of the college or university even immediately after their freshman yr and however graduate in four a long time. Martinson expects his gift to bring in “very major pupils in the location and across the place.
“That problems college, which leads to superior educating during the College and prepares Honors pupils for graduate college and to acquire scholarships.”
Graduates of the Honors software have gone on to totally funded master’s and doctoral courses at Dartmouth, Harvard, MIT, Oxford and a lot of other people. They’ve also landed Fulbright, Goldwater and Boren scholarships. Others are used at prestigious corporations, these types of as Boeing, DuPont, Ernst & Young, and The Vanguard Group.
Martinson’s donation is the 2nd significant reward to the Honors School. In 2004, the late Thomas N. Bantivoglio gave $1 million to bolster the Honors program, which was founded at then-Glassboro Condition Higher education in 1989. In 2017, the Honors School was started. The Bantivoglio Honors Focus will keep on being in the new John H. Martinson Honors Faculty.
“Mr. Martinson’s gift is 1 of the best endorsements our Honors software can obtain,” suggests Vice President for University Development Jesse Shafer, government director of the Rowan University Basis. “His return is in the type of influence. He is publicly stating, ‘I know this is a incredible benefit. I’m generating an financial commitment listed here.’
“He is not an alumnus and has no family members tie to Rowan. His gift is a elegant affirmation of our institution and where by it is heading.”
Cultivating ‘citizen scholars’
Martinson earned his B.S. in aeronautical engineering from the U.S. Air Pressure Academy, his M.S. in astronautics from Purdue College, and an M.B.A. from Southern Illinois University.
Just before building his present, Martinson frequented campus and later on fulfilled nearly with Honors students and college customers. Each semester, around 35 college associates train in the Honors software.
“We are looking for extremely perfectly-rounded scholars who give back to the community,” Talley suggests of Honors college students. “We want to cultivate citizen students. He appreciated the power of that.
“We had a arduous discussion about Honors,” she proceeds. “He has an unparalleled know-how of Honors schools and courses. His gift will let us to enrich our applicant pool. We’re heading to be in a position to choose what we’re accomplishing to the next amount. We are utterly overjoyed to have his assist.”
