Draft:Alice Coonley Higgins: Difference between revisions

 

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== Introduction ==

== Introduction ==

[https://www.clarku.edu/news/2011/06/27/alice-higgins-made-a-significant-mark-on-clark-university/ Alice Coonley Higgins] was an academic and philanthropist who contributed to the development of [https://www.clarku.edu/ Clark University], a private research university in Worcester, Massachusetts. She played a large role in developing the university‘s library, the [https://www.clarku.edu/library/ Robert H. Goddard Library], as well as the [https://clarkathletics.com/facilities/kneller-athletic-center/9 Kneller Athletic Center] and the [https://www.clarku.edu/map/places/arthur-m-sackler-sciences-center/ Sackler Sciences Center]. In 1962, she became the first woman elected to Clark University’s Board of Trustees.<ref name=”auto”>{{Cite web |date=2011-06-27 |title=Alice Higgins made a significant mark on Clark University |url=https://www.clarku.edu/news/2011/06/27/alice-higgins-made-a-significant-mark-on-clark-university/ |access-date=2025-12-09 |website=ClarkU News |language=en-US}}</ref> In her time as chair of the Board of Trustees, she was the first woman to serve as chair of a board of trustees at a research university in the U.S. <ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-09-26 |title=A Legacy in Bloom |url=https://www.clarku.edu/news/2024/09/26/a–legacy–in–bloom/ |access-date=2025-12-09 |website=ClarkU News |language=en-US}}</ref>

[https://www.clarku.edu/news/2011/06/27/alice-higgins-made-a-significant-mark-on-clark-university/ Alice Coonley Higgins] was an academic and philanthropist who contributed to the development of [https://www.clarku.edu/ Clark University], a private research university in Worcester, Massachusetts. She played a large role in developing the university, the Robert H. Goddard Library. In 1962, she became the first woman elected to Clark University’s Board of Trustees.<ref name=”auto”>{{Cite web |date=2011-06-27 |title=Alice Higgins made a significant mark on Clark University |url=https://www.clarku.edu/news/2011/06/27/alice-higgins-made-a-significant-mark-on-clark-university/ |access-date=2025-12-09 |website=ClarkU News |language=en-US}}</ref> the first of a board of trustees.<ref>{{Cite |date= |title= |url=https://..///—/ |access-date= |= |=}}</ref>

== Personal Life and Education ==

== Personal Life and Education ==

Alice Higgins grew up in a privileged family located in Lake Forest, Illinois. She attended Milton Academy, then [https://www.vassar.edu/ Vassar] and [https://barnard.edu/ Barnard] Colleges. In the [[Great Depression]], Higgins was employed in a secretarial role at the Austin Riggs Foundation (now known as the [https://www.austenriggs.org/ Austin Riggs Center]), located in Stockbridge, Massachusetts. During this time, she met her future husband, Milton Prince Higgins II, a Worcester local and heir to the Norton Abrasives Company. Upon Moving to Worcester, Higgins raised her family there during WWII, and accompanied Milton on various business trips around the world. She was a volunteer in the Worcester community, and her relationship with Clark University became one of increasing devotion, as exemplified by various projects she undertook<ref name=”auto”/>, which are described later on this page.

Alice Higgins grew up in a privileged family located in Lake Forest, Illinois . In the Great Depression, Higgins was employed in at the [https://www.austenriggs.org/ Austin Riggs Center]. , she met her future husband, Milton Prince Higgins II, heir to the Norton Abrasives Company. Upon to Worcester, Higgins raised her family there during WWII and accompanied Milton on . She was a volunteer in the Worcester community, and her relationship with Clark University became one of increasing devotion, as exemplified by various projects she undertook<ref name=”auto”/>, which are described later on this page.

== Contributions to Clark and Worcester ==

== Contributions to Clark and Worcester ==

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Alice Coonley Higgins was an academic and philanthropist who contributed to the development of Clark University, a private research university in Worcester, Massachusetts. She played a large role in developing a number of buildings at the university, including the Robert H. Goddard Library. In 1962, she became the first woman elected to Clark University’s Board of Trustees.^[1] Her appointment to the board also led her to become the first female head of a university’s board of trustees.^[2]

Born in 1909, Alice Higgins grew up in a privileged family located in Lake Forest, Illinois, before attending college in the state of New York. In the Great Depression, Higgins was employed in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, at the Austin Riggs Center. There, she met her future husband, Milton Prince Higgins II, the then-heir to the Norton Abrasives Company. Upon marrying and moving to Worcester, Higgins raised her family there during WWII and accompanied Milton on a variety of global business trips. She was a volunteer in the Worcester community, and her relationship with Clark University became one of increasing devotion, as exemplified by various projects she undertook^[1], which are described later on this page.

Alice Coonley Higgins Institute for Arts and Humanities

Higgins made a variety of contributions to Clark over the years. One of the most prominent was her role in the development of the Alice Coonley Higgins Institute for Arts and Humanities. In 1986, after being inspired by an idea of then-Provost Leonard Barry, Higgins donated $1 million for the establishment of the school, which was originally referred to as the Higgins School of Humanities. The school became the ground for a variety of programs at Clark and provided support toward faculty research. Initially, the school focused on Clark audiences. It hosted seminars given by faculty, and gave donations for faculty research and student activities. It also launched the African American Intellectual series and held faculty discussions.

Throughout the 2000s, the institute continued its mission to provide a high-quality education to Clark students. In 2005, Sarah Buie, a design professor, partnered with William Fischer who was then the director of the Department of Sustainability and Social Justice, to lead 16 faculty and staff in applying for the Ford Foundation’s Difficult Dialogues program, which uses dialogue to address social injustices. In a pool of 720 applicants, Clark University became one of 27 colleges and universities that were funded. The Clark community began its own version of Difficult Dialogues in 2006, making it a staple of the Higgins Institute for over a decade. ^[3]

Philanthropy in Worcester

Alice and Milton Higgins both impacted the Worcester community through philanthropical support. They both continued a family tradition of service towards the Worcester Art Museum, serving as ambassadors for the institution. Alice Higgins also accompanied Milton on global business travels on behalf of the Higgins’ family business, Norton Co., which was a globally renowned producer of abrasives products. In tandem, she served in the emergency department for the Memorial Hospital in Worcester, where she also established a volunteer service and raised funds for the organization. ^[4]

Development of the Goddard Library

One of Higgins’ most important contributions to Clark University was the development of the Robert Hutchings Goddard Library. In 1962, Higgins became a Clark trustee and was assigned the planning and development of the library as her first job in that position. Without the possession of knowledge that she deemed necessary to build a library, she was mentored by Executive Vice President Bob Hyde. ^[5]Alice Higgins served on a committee dedicated to raising $5.4 million for the library. ^[4] When the concept of the library evolved, it was decided that the building would replace the President’s House, which was demolished. The committee then began searching for an architect. Its members visited twenty-two different sites to review work by just over ten architects. Eventually, seven architects were invited to present in Worcester. Of those architects, the committee chose John Johansen, a member of the famed “Harvard Five.” Johansen was chosen due to his lack of experience designing libraries and his concept of the library as a “box of books,” (Higgins, 4) with vital services developed as appropriate. The library was named after Robert Goddard in exchange for his letters, correspondence and memorabilia and patents for his work. ^[5]

My Liberal Education