In appreciation of the education he received at Iowa State, an ISU business alumnus donated money to establish an endowed faculty chair position for the business college.

The donation from John DeVries, a 1959 graduate in industrial administration, and his wife, Ruth, established the DeVries Endowment Chair to honor and recognize a business administrator or faculty member.

“I hope the chair will help attract or support an outstanding faculty that we have [in the college] and to help carry out programs,” said John DeVries, president and CEO of Colorfx, Inc. in Des Moines.

Although John DeVries opted not to release how much he and his wife donated, the gift for an endowed chair usually starts at about $1.5 million, said Tom Mitchell, ISU Foundation president.

An endowed gift provides a perpetual source of funding for the purpose specified by the donor, Mitchell said. The gift is invested to create a permanent fund, with excess earnings reinvested in the fund to grow over time, he said. Only a percentage of the gift earnings are used annually to fund the scholarship or other specified purposes.

“[The gift] is a wonderful symbol of John and Ruth DeVries’ belief in the College of Business and its future and their continued commitment to Iowa State students,” Mitchell said. “This gift will directly benefit students and the college by helping Iowa State become more competitive in recruiting and retaining outstanding business faculty and scholars.”

Whoever is selected for the chair position will use the money at his or her own discretion, said Gary Koppenhaver, interim associate dean of the college.

“This position will have an appointment within whatever their department is to do research and teach,” he said. “[The endowment] will provide additional funds for their own development, [and] the chair will have discretion.”

Business college officials want to wait until the new Gerdin Business Building is closer to completion before John DeVries and the business dean name the chairperson, Koppenhaver said.

“There has to be an analysis of some candidates,” he said. “Mr. DeVries isn’t ready to [decide on a candidate] yet.”

Koppenhaver said it is not clear at this time if the chair will be filled by an existing or new faculty member. The endowment could be used to entice or help recruit a new member, he said.

“[The endowment] is an additional resource the college can use to either keep faculty and help them develop, or help recruit more faculty that might be an expert in a particular area, who has lots of recognition, not only in his profession, but nationally,” Koppenhaver said.

One person will fill the chair position for about five years before being reassigned, he said.

John DeVries said he donated to the college because he believes in what the college and university are doing.

“It does take an investment in students and faculty, and that’s why we’ve joined together to make this happen,” he said. “The College of Business is a very integral part of the university . With the rapid growth [of the college], it needs its own facility, and it needs more support for leadership in the faculty to bring in students.”

The endowment is an important gift to the college, Koppenhaver said.

“It’s one of the first steps to invest in the humans who will make up the Gerdin Business Building,” he said.

John DeVries is a Foundation governor and has served as chairman of the Foundation Board of Directors, Mitchell said. He also serves on the advisory council for the College of Business and the board of directors for the Gateway Center, Mitchell said.

Ruth DeVries is a member of the ISU Museum Curators and volunteers for community organizations. She serves on the board of the Iowa Women’s Golf Association, Easter Seals Iowa and the West Des Moines Library Friends Foundation, as well as on the Polk County Extension Council, Mitchell said.

“John and Ruth are very good benefactors,” Koppenhaver said. “[John] is a great alum for the College of Business. He has helped students, the building and now he’s helping faculty. He is just a very nice guy.”