Lasting International Bonds

After nearly three decades of service to VSB, Finance Professor Robert T. LeClair, PhD, made a generous one million dollar gift to the school. A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, where he received his bachelor’s degree, and of Northwestern University, where he earned an MBA and PhD, Dr. LeClair felt strongly about making a gift to a place he considers to be very special.

Dr. LeClair’s gift to VSB led to the creation of the Robert T. LeClair International Scholars Fund. The primary purpose of this fund is to promote programs that advance international scholarship at VSB. Specifically, the fund will provide support for foreign students attending VSB, foreign professors/lecturers teaching at VSB as visiting scholars and VSB students who wish to study abroad but need financial assistance. The intention behind his gift, according to Dr. LeClair, is that the fund would make possible a unique learning exchange between countries.

“I’m hopeful that the experience will work in both directions,”he said. “Foreign students coming here would have opportunities previously unavailable to them, and it would be a rich experience for them to take advantage of all Villanova has to offer. It would also create a situation where our domestic students could interact with folks from abroad, to learn more about foreign students and countries, and to share those experiences.”

“I wanted to do something… to pay Villanova back.”

The nature of the fund is fitting, given Dr. LeClair’s devotion to international business scholarship. For the past 20 years, he taught in Italy, and he has led VSB’s international studies summer program in Rome for the past 15 years. This collaborative program is a six-week experience during which Villanova students take courses at the John Cabot University and learn about global business practices. Dr. LeClair has also conducted research in the area of international finance, and he teaches a number of international business courses at VSB.

Thanks to Dr. LeClair, who now joins the University’s distinguished 1842 Heritage Society that recognizes donors who have included Villanova in their estate plans in various ways, VSB is able to enhance the learning opportunities for its own students as well as for those international students who wish to join our community.

“Dr. LeClair’s generosity promotes cultural collaboration, international business education and first-hand global experience. The Fund also extends VSB’s international reach and provides students- both domestic and abroad-with the chance to travel and learn in a way that was previously unattainable. We are incredibly grateful for Dr. LeClair’s generosity,” said Patrick Maggitti, The Helen and William O’Toole Dean.

Originally published in the Summer/Fall 2013 Issue of Villanova Business magazine.