Virginia’s College of William & Mary is the third oldest institution of higher learning in the United States (founded in 1693)—but it’s still making history in 2024.
This past week it received a $100 million gift, its largest ever, its largest gift ever, to create a brand new School of Coastal & Marine Sciences. It breaks the record as the highest gift ever given to a university for a school dedicated to coastal and marine sciences.
William & Mary’s Batten School of Coastal & Marine Sciences comes courtesy of Virginia Beach philanthropist Jane Batten, the widow of the late Frank Batten, who founded Landmark Communications, the original parent of The Weather Channel. He served on William & Mary’s Board of Visitors in the 1990s.
Mrs. Batten holds two honorary degrees from the College. Previously, the Batten Family has generously supported W&M’s Raymond A. Mason School of Business. This new gift emphasizes the family’s commitment to fostering coastal resilience in the face of global change.
The Batten School of Coastal & Marine Sciences will live at the College’s Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) on the York River in Gloucester Point. Established by law in 1940 as the Virginia Fisheries Laboratory and fully integrated with William & Mary in 1979, VIMS serves as a state agency researching and advising Virginia regulators on marine science, along with its academic programs.
VIMS is already a global leader in coastal and marine research, education, and public engagement. The Batten School will strengthen its offerings, to offer a B.S. in addition to the existing M.A., M.S., and Ph.D. degrees.
Mrs. Batten is deeply concerned that the accelerating pace of global change poses grave challenges to marine systems and to billions of people who live near coastlines. Worldwide, coastal communities face existential threats: rising sea levels, increased storm intensity and flooding, loss of agricultural land, and impaired water quality. Rapid global change—a term that encompasses more than just climate change—is deteriorating ecological, economic, and social stability in coastal communities and marine systems. It impacts approximately 3.2 billion people worldwide, including 128 million in the U.S. who live near coastlines. In Virginia alone, it affects nearly five million people who live in coastal regions, and more up the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland.
“William & Mary has long been at the vanguard of research tackling urgent local, national, and international challenges. No institution is better positioned to address global change,” said President Katherine Rowe. “By investing in bold ideas and new partnerships, the Batten School will power ‘science for solutions’ for Virginia and the world.”
“We have a geographical advantage, expertise advantage, and historical presence in this area. We also have the breadth and depth in coastal and marine systems to allow us to take on very significant challenges that other places aren’t equipped for,” said Dean of the Batten School and Director of VIMS Dr. Derek Aday.
“With this unprecedented gift, we will not only advance critical research and inform policy but also train the next generation of scientists. We are optimistic about our next chapter and hopeful that together, with partners across the globe, we can implement real change,” Aday said.
