Aprill & Horwitz: What do universities owe their big donors? Less than you might think
Exchanging gifts with family and friends can become fraught with contradictory emotions. Instead of gratitude, the recipients of expensive gifts may wind up feeling indebted to the givers. And the givers can have regrets too.
The same kinds of complicated motivations and expectations can sour relations between big donors and the institutions they support.
This dynamic has been playing out in a very public fashion lately with some high-profile donors to prestigious U.S. universities. At issue for these donors is the schools’ response to debates and demonstrations on their campuses after Hamas’ terrorist attacks on Israel and the Israeli government’s military campaign in Gaza that followed.
Lloyd Mayer