Graduate Arts Program Receives $1 Million Gift

The Graduate Arts program at Stony Brook Southampton recently received a gift of $1 million.

The money comes from Southampton resident and Stony Brook Foundation Trustee Dorothy Lichtenstein, who presented a check on July 17 during the annual Southampton Writers Conference opening night, which featured a conversation about writing with former PBS News Hour anchor and novelist Jim Lehrer and his wife, novelist Kate Lehrer.

“This gift reflects my confidence in President Stanley’s leadership and the University’s commitment to excellence in the arts at Stony Brook Southampton. It also reflects my confidence in the extraordinary leadership of Robert Reeves, who has founded many of these programs and presided over their dramatic growth," said Lichtenstein.

The money, according to Robert Reeves, associate provost for Southampton Graduate Arts, will be used "take advantage of fresh opportunities," improve the David Rakoff Studio Theater, for scholarships for students, and toward the launch of the school's digital filmmaking program.

"This gift comes at just the right time," said Reeves.