Bauer Power
Alumni boost residential life

WITH A MILESTONE GIFT OF $10 MILLION, Robert ’40 and Virginia ’42 Bauer are helping Cornell transform student life on West Campus.

Calling Cornell’s residential programs on North and West Campuses “progressive” and “impressive,” Bob Bauer notes: “It’s a great advancement. When Ginny and I first heard about the initiative from Frank Rhodes and Hunter Rawlings, it sounded like a dream. And now it has come true. I think these efforts to erect new buildings, make substantial upgrades, and create new living opportunities for a lot of bright students are just terrific. We were very impressed when we took a tour through the North Campus facilities, and supporting the initiative was important to us both.”

A wing of Court Hall, a residence hall on North Campus, was renamed Bauer Hall in honor of the Bauer family, who attended a dedication ceremony in October. The Bauers’ generosity will support programs and facilities on West Campus.

Bob Bauer says that when he read about Bob ’53 and Helen ’55 Appel’s gift to name Appel Commons on North Campus, he realized that he and Ginny could make a much greater impact on Cornell than they expected. Cornell’s Office of Gift Planning guided them through their options.

“Through their timely and generous gift, Bob and Ginny Bauer have brought new energy to the Residential Initiative,” says President Rawlings. “Their commitment helps advance Cornell’s aspiration to become the best research university for undergraduate education in the world, and we are delighted to recognize their leadership by renaming Court Hall in their honor. My own experience as a house fellow at Alice Cook House on West Campus has convinced me that students derive tangible benefits from a closer connection between their living and learning environments. The first two residential houses are filled to capacity, and the residents are enthusiastic and engaged.”

While Cornell’s student population has increased considerably since Bob and Ginny were undergraduates, they know from experience that establishing a sense of community is vital to student success. As students, Bob lived in Cascadilla Hall his freshman year and pledged to Sigma Phi Epsilon, while Ginny enjoyed sorority life at Kappa Kappa Gamma.

“These were meaningful experiences for both of us, and we made great friends,” Ginny says.“

I think it’s very helpful for freshmen to live together on North Campus,” Bob says. “And I think the efforts to improve student life through the new West Campus house system are wonderful.” The Bauers also strongly support Cornell’s efforts to encourage greater faculty and student interaction outside of the classroom—a key aim of the West Campus initiative.

Bob and Ginny met as students at Cornell in 1938 and married in 1941. They enjoy a long and successful partnership in philanthropy as well as marriage. The Cornell connection runs in the family. Their son, George W. Bauer II ’67, ME ’68, continued the family tradition, and their grandson, Dustin Howell ’09, is a freshman. Bob’s sister, Dorothy, was a member of the Class of 1936.

Bob and Ginny’s care for and allegiance to Cornell have strengthened the university’s mission across three areas. They support learning by providing scholarships in the College of Engineering. They advance research and teaching through the establishment of Bauer Lab in Duffield Hall. And their support of the Residential Initiative enhances student life.“We saw very little of the faculty outside of classes and had no close contact with faculty when we were students,” Bob says. “This represents a real improvement for current students.”

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