Jazz Enthusiast Paula Knickerbocker Donates $125,000 to Artist-in-Residency Program At University of Idaho Lionel Hampton Center
Friday, March 30 2001
March 30, 2001^MOSCOW – The Paula Knickerbocker Foundation has made a gift of $125,000 to the University of Idaho Lionel Hampton Center initiative to support a jazz piano artist-in-residency. ^This gift to support an ongoing jazz piano artist-in-residency will allow the Lionel Hampton School of Music to bring world-renowned jazz pianists in direct contact with UI students, the community and children through the “Jazz in Schools” program.^ “This is a generous gift from a devoted supporter of music at the University of Idaho,” said Beverly Lingle, executive director of the Lionel Hampton Center initiative.^ Paula Knickerbocker is a lifelong jazz enthusiast and horsewoman now living in Nevada. She established her foundation to ensure the advancement of jazz and the preservation and promotion of the Friesian carriage horse, a rare and exclusive Dutch carriage horse. She travels the world showing her extensive vintage carriage collection and performing clinics and demonstrations with her team of Friesians. She is also a founding shareholder and director of Wealthbank, N.A. and the Coeur d’Alene-based Idaho Trust Company, which administers her foundation.^ “This is a monumental gift in that it establishes the first artist-in-residency at the Lionel Hampton School of Music at the University of Idaho,” said Idaho Trust Company’s Benjamin Prohaska. “The goal is to have others follow the lead of the Knickerbocker Foundation and Idaho Trust Company and work to establish programs that satisfy the donor and the university. This will allow for the completion of the fundraising for The Campaign for Idaho and the Lionel Hampton Center well ahead of schedule.”^ In addition to this new jazz piano artist-in-residency position, the Paula Knickerbocker Foundation provides a music student scholarship at UI and has contributed the original funding for the ongoing documentary on the life of Lionel Hampton.^“The Paula Knickerbocker Foundation has been a generous and enthusiastic supporter of our program here at the Lionel Hampton School of Music,” said Professor James L. Murphy, director of the Lionel Hampton School of Music. “The faculty and students are excited about her latest gift which will enable us to offer expert instruction in jazz piano. We are currently reviewing and revising our long-range plans for music education at the University of Idaho, and the music faculty are discussing various programmatic options in jazz studies. The Paula Knickerbocker Foundation’s recent gift allows us to be less speculative and more concrete in that planning.”^The Lionel Hampton School of Music is one of the four major parts of the $60 million Lionel Hampton Center initiative at the UI. The center will provide umbrella support for the school, the Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival, the International Jazz Collections and construction of a new performance and education facility on the Moscow campus.^The Paula Knickerbocker Foundation gift is a part of The Campaign for Idaho, a multi-year, $100 million fundraising campaign aimed at supporting the UI’s strategic initiatives. CONTACTS: Beverly Lingle, executive director of the Lionel Hampton Center initiative, (208) 892-3327, blingle@uidaho.edu; Professor James L. Murphy, director of the Lionel Hampton School of Music, (208) 885-6231, jmurphy@uidaho.edu; or Kathy Barnard, University Communications and Marketing, (208) 885-6291, kbarnard@uidaho.edu^^-30-^krb—3/09/01UAV==^
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The University of Idaho helps students to succeed and become leaders. Its land-grant mission furthers innovative scholarly and creative research to grow Idaho's economy and serve a statewide community. From its main campus in Moscow, Idaho, to 70 research and academic locations statewide, U-Idaho emphasizes real-world application as part of its student experience. U-Idaho combines the strength of a large university with the intimacy of small learning communities. It is home to the Vandals. For information, visit www.uidaho.edu.