Sarah Lawrence College recently announced it received $15 million from journalist and author Barbara Walters to build an on-campus student center.
The gift, the largest single donation in the Yonkers school”™s history, will fund what will be called The Barbara Walters Campus Center. The building will house the school”™s radio station and serve as a venue for everyday student needs and various campus events, according to a statement released by the college.
Walters, a Sarah Lawrence alumna, delivered the commencement speech for last year”™s May graduating class, when she said, “I attribute my success, in many ways to the curiosity and confidence I came away with from this remarkable college,” according to the statement. During that speech Walters also said she planned to donate edited video interviews, transcripts and letters from her interview subjects for the Barbara Walters Archives, which will be kept in the new student center.
Walters graduated from Sarah Lawrence in 1953 and joined ABC News in 1976, where she became the first woman to co-host the network news, and is still with the company today. She is also the creator and former host of the daytime show “The View.”
