St. John's College Receives $2.4 Million Gift from the Ahmet Ertegun Education Fund

Wednesday, July 02, 2008

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ANNAPOLIS, MD – St. John's College has received a $2.4 million gift from a charitable organization established in the memory of recording industry legend Ahmet Ertegun, a member of the class of 1944, who died in December 2006. As the founder and chairman of Atlantic Records, Mr. Ertegun launched an immensely successful enterprise, but he also helped shape American culture by introducing African–American artists such as Ray Charles to mainstream audiences.

The gift to the college endowment from the Ahmet Ertegun Education Fund, which includes substantial personal contributions from Mr. Ertegun's surviving spouse, Mica Ertegun, will make it possible for the college to offer, in perpetuity, three needs-based scholarships for students from

Turkey

or of Turkish descent. A concert in 2007, featuring Led Zeppelin, raised money for the education fund, which will benefit three other institutions in the U.K. and in Turkey in addition to St. John's.

"Ahmet attributed his success to his excellent education, and his ability to recognize innovative artists that touched us all," said Mica Ertegun, who serves as president of the Fund. "It was his wish to endow music and liberal arts scholarships that would enable gifted children to reach their highest creative potential."

Born in Istanbul in 1923, Mr. Ertegun was intensely proud of his heritage. His father, Mehmet Ertegun, was a diplomat and advisor to Mustafa Ataturk, founder of modern

Turkey

. After the elder Ertegun became ambassador to the U.S. in 1934, and the family moved to Washington, D.C., Mr. Ertegun's interest in jazz and rhythm and blues became a passion.

In 1947, Mr. Ertegun and a partner, Herb Abramson, founded Atlantic Records in New York City. Atlantic focused on African–American music, a genre largely ignored at the time by major record labels. Some of the most important musical figures of the 20th century were recorded by Atlantic: Aretha Franklin, Roberta Flack, John Coltrane, and the Rolling Stones among them. Even after Atlantic was acquired by a larger company in 1967, Mr. Ertegun continued to oversee the label and ensure its success.

A co–founder of the Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame, he was inducted into the Hall in 1987. He was also instrumental in establishing the Rhythm and Blues Foundation, a charitable organization to support destitute artists.

Mr. Ertegun served the college as a member of the college's Board of Visitors and Governors in the 1970s. In 1994, the St. John's Alumni Association honored him with an Award of Merit.

"St. John's," he once said, "offers a true education in everything. It is meant for the student who wishes to be able to become a truly educated person—one who has been exposed to the various types of thought since the beginnings of the Western civilization, and therefore will begin to understand where one stands at this time in the history of the world."

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