The UT Clements Center for National Security received a $10 million donation from the William P. Clements Foundation to support its student programs and help finance an auditorium renovation on campus, according to an Aug. 27 news release.
Founded in 2013, the Clements Center teaches history and policy to prepare students for a career in national security, according to its website. To achieve this, the institution offers May term programs where students can travel to historic sites related to diplomatic and military history, such as South Korea and the United Kingdom. It also oversees an undergraduate fellowship program where admitted students are mentored by center scholars and participate in discussions with invited national security professionals.
The Clements Foundation, an organization focused on the field of education and national defense, donated $10 million to the institution. Joseph Maguire, executive director for the Clements Center, said $9.7 million will go toward an endowment to continue institutional programs. Some of these include the undergraduate fellowship program along with Coffee Hours, which are meetings open to all UT students discussing national security topics, said Paul Edgar, deputy executive director of the center.
“We still need to bring in some funding, but this enables us to cover almost everything that we do for students beyond salaries,” Edgar said. “It’s also a responsibility. This is a stewardship that we’ve been given, and we intend to make good on it.”
Part of the money will also go toward the renovation of the Flawn Academic Center Auditorium, officially renaming it the William P. Clements, Jr. Auditorium, according to the news release. Maguire said this auditorium was selected for renovation because of its location.
“What we’re trying to do is (conduct) outreach to as many UT Longhorn students as we can to at least make them aware and expose them to national security,” Maguire said. “If we’re having a function just a floor below and we’ve got a bunch of our Longhorn students doing some homework or research (at the Flawn Academic Center) … more often than not, that piques their interests.”
Avery Kurzontkowski, a government and Plan II junior, said she attended Coffee Hours during her freshman year to learn more about national security for her role as a cadet in the U.S. Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps’ program. She is now an undergraduate fellow and looks forward to learning more about jobs in national security, she said.
“I’m excited to just network,” Kurzontkowski said. “Sitting down with people and being able to talk and understand their careers from a firsthand perspective … I’m really excited and blessed that I have this opportunity.”
Phoebe Cosgrove, a social work senior, is also an undergraduate fellow and said she enjoys talking with guest speakers during national security discussions.
“Alongside that (are) really the friends that I’ve created at the Clements Center,” Cosgrove said. “It has been my family on campus.”
Kurzontkowski said she plans to commission in the U.S. Air Force after graduation with the intent of eventually becoming an intelligence officer. The donation to the Clements Center highlights the importance of national security education, she said.
“They have the funds, they have the donors, they have the people, but they are not donating toward (just any program),” Kurzontkowski said. “They’re donating because they want to invest in the best students who they think are going to lead our country and secure our interests.”
