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Harold T. Clark Jr. '65 Establishes Utica College's First Endowed Professorship
Theodore Orlin Named Harold T. Clark Jr. Professor of Human Rights Scholarship and Advocacy
Written By Christine LeoGrande
Contact - cleogrande@utica.edu
Utica, NY (08/29/2005) - Utica College alumnus Harold T. Clark Jr. has established the first endowed professorship in the college’s 59-year history.UC President Todd S. Hutton announced the establishment of the endowed professorship on Monday, Aug. 29 during the college’s Convocation ceremonies and named Theodore S. Orlin the first holder of the Harold T. Clark Jr. Professor of Human Rights Scholarship and Advocacy.
The endowed professorship is being funded from the sale of an appreciated asset given to the college by Clark, bringing a total of $2.7 million in newly realized resources to the college. In addition to the professorship, Clark has created an endowment for faculty research and creative endeavor, and has directed $2 million toward the college’s planned Science and Technology Complex, allowing UC to move forward with an anticipated groundbreaking sometime later this year.
“Utica College, along with my parents, and a summer job working the night shift at Mohawk Containers, all had a profound effect on my personal development,” Clark said. “I am glad to ‘repay’ the college for everything it did for me. I also look at the college as a huge community asset that needs everyone’s support.”
President Hutton said, “An endowed professorship is one of the highest and most prestigious honors a college can award a faculty member. Mr. Clark's vision, and the magnitude of the resources he has helped generate, takes Utica College to a new level in its ability to recognize and support academic excellence. This award provides a significant opportunity to recognize the depth and breadth of academic talent among our faculty, and to support professors as they go afield in their research and scholarly activity.”
Clark, president of Mac-Clark Restaurants Inc., is a 1965 graduate of Utica College and a 2003 recipient of an honorary doctor of laws degree from the college. His service to and support of UC has been immeasurable. He was a charter member and the first-ever chair of the Board of Trustees. Additionally, he has served as president of the Utica College Foundation Board and the Utica College Alumni Association. In 1996, he became the college’s first $1 million donor. His leadership and support during the Campaign for Utica College in 1998 helped establish a new level of giving for the college, and his active promotion of the Pioneer Golf Tournament during the past four years has helped raise $200,000 for the expansion of the institution’s athletic programs and facilities.
The establishment of the Harold T. Clark Jr. Endowed Professorship is the latest in a long-standing tradition of philanthropic leadership by Clark on behalf of Utica College. He is the benefactor of an endowed scholarship that assists students with demonstrated financial need as well as a distinguished faculty award that is presented annually at Commencement, recognizing scholarship, professional accomplishment and potential for excellence. In 1987, Utica College dedicated the Harold T. Clark Athletic Center, paying tribute to Clark’s vision and support for UC athletics. In 2001, the college dedicated the Harold T. Clark Sr. Team Facility in honor of his late father.
Orlin has served on the faculty of Utica College since 1983 as a professor of criminal justice/government and politics. A foremost expert in human rights training, he is the director and cofounder of the college’s Human Rights Advocacy Program, which has provided counsel and training to non-governmental organizations in transitional democracies. In June 2005, Orlin was elected president of the International Human Rights Education Consortium, moving the IHREC’s secretariat to Utica College for the next four years. The Consortium, of which Utica College was a founding member, was created by educators in human rights five years ago to promote collaboration, develop curriculum, educate and train professionals in the field, and to support and prepare educators at all levels. Orlin has provided training, consultation and advocacy to human rights advocates in countries around the world, including Albania, Bulgaria, Cameroon, India, Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia, Moldova, and Taiwan. He has been a Fulbright Professor at the Institute for Human Rights in Turku, Finland, and has written, edited and contributed to a number of publications on human rights, including the Albanian Human Rights Glossary.
About Utica College – Founded in 1946, Utica College is a comprehensive private institution that grants the Syracuse University baccalaureate degree and the Utica College master’s and doctoral degrees. The College, located in central New York, approximately 90 miles west of Albany and 50 miles east of Syracuse, currently enrolls an approximated 2,300 undergraduate and 350 graduate students in 30 undergraduate majors, 24 minors, 12 master’s and two doctoral degree programs.
