Davidson College Secures $47 Million to Launch the D.G. and Harriet Wall Martin Institute for Public Good
February 26, 2026
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- Mark Johnson
Davidson College has raised more than $47 million to establish the Martin Institute for Public Good, an ambitious and unprecedented initiative in higher education.
The institute aims to develop effective, ethical citizens and leaders who build community and solve society’s big problems.
The $47 million results from the kind of collaboration the Martin Institute aims to produce: More than a dozen alums and friends of the college have made leadership gifts to fuel the institute since its launch last August.
It will be named the D.G. and Harriet Wall Martin Institute for Public Good. The naming honors the generous support of Harriet Wall Martin, a lifelong community leader, and her late husband, D.G. Martin, a 1962 Davidson graduate, university leader, lawyer, Green Beret, public servant and storyteller, who personified Davidson’s mission of service.
“The Martin Institute for Public Good is a signature initiative that propels Davidson’s strengths into public life,” said President Doug Hicks ’90. “It reflects the values of the Martin family and how D.G. lived: a quiet, resolute leader who sought to better the lives of those around him. The Martin Institute will help Davidson advance the civic purpose of a liberal arts education at a time when the fractures and gaps in society have grown. The world needs more bridge builders like Harriet and D.G. Martin.”
Davidson College long has developed in its students many of the capacities that the Martin Institute will cultivate. That education transpired across the college. Now the Martin Institute brings together existing and new programs that will prepare graduates to build common purpose and solve public problems.
“Our dad grew up on the Davidson campus, brought up by parents in a community that was committed to service,” May Martin Bryan said. “And our mom put her heart and hard work into helping lead efforts vital to the people where we lived, from church to cultural institutions to individual rights. Both our parents provided a powerful example of leading and serving in whatever environment they found themselves.”
The family tradition continues: Bryan, a member of the Class of 1993, has a lifelong dedication to public education and her community, serving in volunteer capacities through the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Public Schools System and as chair of the CHCCS Public School Foundation. Her brother, Grier, Class of 1991, served as an Army paratrooper in Afghanistan, a state legislator, a Pentagon adviser and North Carolina’s Secretary of Military & Veterans Affairs.
The family’s gifts to fund the institute also include support for one of the institute’s five program areas, Arts and Public Life.
The institute’s five coordinated program areas, which have all been endowed, are:
- The Grier Martin, Class of 1932, and Louise McMichael Martin Program on Arts and Public Life
- The Beacon Program on Deliberation and Free Expression
- The Allison S. and Thomas C. Franco Program on Public Policy and Research
- The Neely and Jack Purcell Program on Ethics, Honor and Leadership
- The William F. and Betty G. Mulliss Center for Civic Engagement
The Martin Institute embodies the truth that Davidson College, as a private institution grounded in the Reformed Tradition as well as in a student-driven Honor Code, shapes and serves the public good. The college engages the greater Charlotte region through collaboration and service, delivers a half-billion dollar economic impact in the state each year and sends curious and courageous graduates across the nation and around the world to navigate the unfamiliar and to steer practical solutions.
Our nation and our world require more of our leaders and citizens each day. They need an unprecedented array of skills, as they tackle tough challenges from every angle. The Martin Institute positions Davidson as a national leader in cultivating the grounded and influential decision-making that will guide future generations.
Katie ’90 and Stan Humphries ’90 Director of the Martin Institute for Public Good
Marsicano is an associate professor and chair of Education Studies and founder of the College Crisis Initiative.
Stacey Riemer will continue to serve as director of the Mulliss Center for Civic Engagement and has taken on the role of the Dr. Samuel Burney Hay, Class of 1916, Managing Director of the Martin Institute for Public Good.
The Martin Institute for Public Good will add multiple avenues for students to engage and learn, such as: equipping Honor Council and Student Government Association members in their campus leadership, teaching students how to engage in respectful and deliberative conversation, or teaming up students with policy experts and visiting leaders to develop bridge-building solutions.
The $47 million in foundational gifts include providing for the renovation of historic Philanthropic and Eumenean Halls, among the first buildings constructed on campus and which will serve as the Institute’s new home, along with Elm Row. Phi and Eu, for short, were built for two competing debate societies, with balconies that face each other for a civil, spirited exchange. The renovation will include the creation of the Mack Family Plaza as an active gathering space between Phi and Eu halls.
Hicks emphasized the alignment of Davidson’s campus, values, and location.
“Phi and Eu halls are built for mutual listening and learning, and our Honor Code anchors a culture of trust and respect,” he said. “The college brings students from around the country and world to learn together on campus in a major metro area of a political swing state. These combined strengths of free discourse, integrity, and local context situate the college well to meet the current moment, and the future.”
The Institute establishes a national model in higher education—a suite of the critical endeavors found separately across other institutions. It combines the strengths of a civic engagement center, which helps guide practical work in communities near and far; a think tank, to help develop policy ideas; and a site for programs and events that connect students with experts from all sectors of public life.
In this work, the Martin Institute for Public Good will recruit to the campus visiting fellows, distinguished practitioners and scholars in each of the program areas. They will mentor students, teach a course, work on projects and offer public lectures.
Davidson has sent countless leaders into the public sphere, including: governors, a U.S. senator, a U.S. secretary of transportation, a U.S. secretary of state, members of Congress, CEOs, professional athletes, entrepreneurs, soldiers, an astronaut, national religious leaders and pioneering researchers.
The college’s history shines with distinguished leaders and citizens who proudly carry their Davidson degree into careers that have served neighborhoods and nations. Their ability to cultivate relationships and reframe problems enabled them to drive change. We are elevating the many elements of Davidson that made those stories possible.
President of Davidson College
Rendering of restored Phi and Eu Halls and connecting Mack Family Plaza.
Foundational Gifts
In addition to the lead naming gift by the Martin family, these gifts will fuel the Institute:
Eu and Phi Halls
Eu and Phi Halls and Elm Row, the Institute’s new home, will be renovated with the help of gifts from Jay Hurt ’88, for whom the balcony and assembly room of Eu Hall will be named, and from Steven and Amy Harris Wacaster ’98, for whom the great room in Phi Hall will be named. A gift from Cathleen Quinn Trask ’91 and Patrick Trask ’93 will be recognized by naming the Trask Family Balcony in Phi Hall. The two buildings were constructed in the 19th century for the college’s first debate societies with their balconies facing each other within hearing distance. A gift from Mary Tabb Mack ’84 and Barry Mack ’82 will support the design and construction of a plaza between Phi and Eu Halls, which will carry their family’s name.
“These stately buildings embody a long and storied history of spirited debate. The Institute will build on that legacy as a place where opposing perspectives will be equally and respectively heard,” Hurt said.
“We are excited to help restore a meaningful part of Davidson’s history and grateful for the role this space will play in fostering thoughtful civil discourse on campus and beyond,” said Amy Harris Wacaster.
The Macks added, “The plaza will be a gathering place, creating a sense of community for the Institute and a forum for learning, collaboration and debate. We are delighted to be a part of this work, while honoring our rich Davidson history across multiple generations.”
The Grier Martin, Class of 1932, and Louise McMichael Martin Program on Arts and Public Life
The Grier Martin, Class of 1932, and Louise McMichael Martin Program on Arts and Public Life will be named for the college’s 13th president and his wife, a gifted actress, who were D.G. Martin’s parents. It will help students expand moral imagination, create connections and face societal challenges through culture and the arts. It is supported by a gift from Harriet Wall Martin and the late D.G. Martin ’62.
The Beacon Program on Deliberation and Free Expression
The Beacon Program on Deliberation and Free Expression, supported by Jon Morris ’94, echoes Davidson’s Commitment to Freedom of Expression and will include the college’s Deliberative Citizenship Initiative and development of the Deliberative Citizenship Network, which will guide efforts to teach respectful disagreement and civil debate on more than 100 college and university campuses. That pioneering network will be funded by a $4 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education. Morris’s gift also will endow the program director’s position, the Beacon Director of Deliberation and Free Expression, who will be responsible for advancing the cause of academic freedom and free speech.
“We want students to help turn arguments into constructive debate,” Morris said, “whether over a town’s zoning decision or national rules on immigration.”
The Allison S. and Thomas C. Franco Program on Public Policy and Research
The Allison S. and Thomas C. Franco Program on Public Policy and Research will enable students, faculty and visiting experts to tackle public policy and research with results that touch lives across all corners of society. It will build and expand upon what is now the College Crisis Initiative. Their gift also endows the Allison S. and Thomas C. Franco Director of Public Policy and Research position.
“An undergraduate student could gather mounds of data on a problem affecting a particular industry,” the Francos said in a joint statement, “then, analyze it for trends on how the industry is responding and provide that work to members of that industry, government agencies, the media and the public to shape better responses.”
The Neely and Jack Purcell Program on Ethics, Honor and Leadership
The Neely and Jack Purcell Program on Ethics, Honor and Leadership highlights Davidson’s distinctive Honor Code and how it helps create a culture of trust and support on campus. Students take exams without proctors, leave backpacks unattended without worry and tell stories of lost money or possessions that were returned. Alums routinely tell how the culture of trust has carried through in how they conduct their lives and careers, a contribution that is vital in light of the public’s declining trust in institutions and the ethical quandaries of artificial intelligence. The Institute already has played host to the first two gatherings of student, faculty and staff honor council leaders from colleges and universities across the country, and it received a nearly $800,000 Educating Character Initiative grant from the Program for Leadership and Character, at Wake Forest University.
“This program area will build on that environment and those values,” the Purcells said in a statement. “It will model integrity, including plain and transparent explanations on ethical questions.”
A gift from Marty and Dan Boone III ’66 will create the Boone Family Director of Ethics, Honor and Leadership.
The William F. and Betty G. Mulliss Center for Civic Engagement
The William F. and Betty G. Mulliss Center for Civic Engagement strengthens and expands Davidson’s commitment to public purpose through partnerships with public and nonprofit organizations. Working alongside communities, it supports internships, service, engaged teaching and scholarship, and collaborative action that address pressing social challenges locally, nationally, and globally. The center is newly named for the late William F. Mulliss, Davidson College Class of 1933, and his wife Betty, to honor the generous ongoing support of their foundation.
Leadership & Endowed Gifts
Stan Humphries ’90 and Katie Bagby Humphries ’90 have endowed the director’s position.
A gift from Loucy and Sam Hay ’84 will establish the Dr. Samuel Burney Hay, Class of 1916, Managing Director of the Martin Institute for Public Good.
The Foxx Family Forum on Civic Issues will bring together students and leaders and experts from a range of perspectives to identify creative, effective solutions to societal issues, with special attention to bridging partisan and other differences and naming actionable steps toward those solutions. It is made possible by a gift from Samara and Anthony Foxx ’93, chair of the college’s Board of Trustees, and supported by a gift from Ashley and Joe Cook ’93.
The Herd Family Fund, which will support programs, events and visiting fellows and scholars, was established by Paula and Dan Herd ’70.
The Martin Institute for Public Good Endowment is supported by lead gifts from Laura and David Hall ’84 and Jackie Kasulis ’98. Future donors can join them in contributing to this unrestricted fund supporting the Institute.
