From the winter 2008 issue of UConn Momentum
A bequest from a noted academic, public servant and education advocate is being used to carry on her legacy. Dorothy C. Goodwin ’57 ’88H, who died in 2007 at age 92, generously supported UConn and the Connecticut State Museum of Natural History during her lifetime. In a fitting tribute, her unrestricted bequest of more than $141,000 to be used at the Foundation’s discretion has been allocated to establish the Dorothy C. Goodwin Fund for Teacher Preparation.
The fund will support museum programs aimed at improving teacher quality that are consistent with the principles of the Teachers for a New Era (TNE) initiative. UConn is one of only 11 colleges and universities nationwide selected as TNE institutions by the initiative’s lead sponsor, the Carnegie Corporation of New York.
“Both TNE and the museum directly serve the needs of UConn students and the youth of the state of Connecticut. With this new endowment, both programs will have a second layer of impact since they enhance the training and knowledge of the next generation of Connecticut’s teachers,” says Douglas Hamilton, associate dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and a member of the TNE Leadership Committee.
Museum Director Leanne Harty notes that collaborative programs with the Neag School of Education will expand hands-on training and better prepare teachers for the classroom.
“The new museum experiences will help on many different levels to make the curriculum align more meaningfully with the real-world classroom and informal science settings that these teachers will eventually find themselves in. They will provide a new way for faculty to reinforce principles with practice and develop more effective teachers,” Harty says.
The new fund adds to a pair of major endowments Goodwin set up during her lifetime: the Dorothy Goodwin Teaching Innovation Fund and the Professor Dorothy C. Goodwin Teaching Institute Endowment Fund.
The endowments reflect Goodwin’s lifelong commitment to public service and education. Goodwin was born in Hartford in 1914, and grew up in Connecticut. After graduating from Smith College in 1937, she held positions at various federal agencies, including the Department of the Interior during World War II. In the late ’40s and early ’50s, she was stationed in Japan as an agricultural economist working for the U.S. Foreign Agriculture Organization.
After returning to Connecticut, Goodwin earned the first doctorate awarded in agricultural economics at UConn in 1957. She then began a long tenure at UConn as an eminent professor and assistant provost. She retired in 1965 after 22 years, during which time she published widely on economics and state aid for education.
Goodwin later returned to public service, winning a seat in the Connecticut General Assembly in 1974. During her five terms, she worked tirelessly as co-chair of the Education Committee and a member of the Finance and Human Services Committees. After retiring from the House of Representatives in 1984, Goodwin was appointed by Governor William O’Neill to the state Board of Education, where she remained until 1990, continuing to shape the state’s public education system.
To support the Neag School of Education, please contact Abigail O’Brien at 860.486.4530 or by e-mail. To support the Connecticut State Museum of Natural History, please contact Frank Gifford at 860.486.6798 or by e-mail.
