winter 2014 | St. Lawrence University Magazine 13
12 winter 2014 | St. Lawrence University Magazine
PHILANTHROPY IN ACTION
International Recruitment on the Rise
Hanson Endowment supports international awareness
By Meg Bernier ’07, M’09
Thomas Friedman once wrote, “Parents and schools and cul-
tures can and do shape people.” Add Eric Hanson ’70 to the list.
The St. Lawrence trustee has looked at
things from a global perspective since a
young age, after spending much of his
childhood abroad because of his parents’
work. In the early 1990s, he noticed others
were starting to do the same.
“People’s careers and jobs started taking
on a much more global tone,” the presi-
dent and founder of Hanson & Doremus
Investment Management says. “It hap-
pened in business and investments all over
the world.”
Hanson knew his industry needed
college graduates who saw their work
through a global lens, but he also knew
many would do this from home rather
than traveling elsewhere.
“Only about 40 percent of Americans have a passport,” he says.
“Americans need to be less insular. That’s why I wanted to find
a way to get St. Lawrence students interested in the world.”
In 2009, he established the Eric H. Hanson ’70 Endow-
ment for International Study at St. Lawrence in an effort to
support the University’s international programs in Asia, with
a particular focus on China. The endowment has enabled a
number of students to travel to China as part of their First-
Year Programs, and funded individual travel for students and
faculty members – including a group who taught English
classes via video conferencing and went to China to teach
English summer camps – and a director of
Asia programs position in the Center for
International and Intercultural Studies.
“When you study abroad through
St. Lawrence, you learn so much about
those countries, and later when you read
news stories about them, you read with a
deeper understanding,” Hanson says. “For-
eign countries and problems are much more
complex than most think. Part of the reason
I’ve focused my philanthropy on Asia and
China specifically is because it’s the most
dynamic part of the developing world.”
The opportunities Hanson has provided
have produced benefits that far exceed
those accrued by the individuals he has
directly helped. “I’ve found when I talked
to parents whose students are doing semesters abroad that the
parents often visit at some point, and usually it’s the first time
the parents have ever been to that part of the world,” he says.
“In doing that, their eyes are opening, too.”
Global Perspective Opportunity
How one alumnus helps St. Lawrence
achieve a more diverse student body
By Meg Bernier ’07, M’09
Zhihong “Hook” Huang ’02 was one of two Chinese
students on campus when he arrived in Canton in fall 1999.
Today, with his help, there are nearly 50
Chinese students at St. Lawrence.
What triggered his participation in St.
Lawrence’s recruitment efforts was meeting
with Director of International Admissions
Musa Khalidi. “After listening to Admis-
sions’ overall strategy for recruiting Chinese
students and how Musa planned to carry
that out, I knew he was the perfect person
to run this,” Huang says. “He designed my
involvement. He knew that hearing the
experiences a former student of Chinese ori-
gin had would be beneficial for everyone.”
Having been through it, Huang under-
stands what Chinese students and families
are looking for in a college. In an effort to
closely connect with the students, he reaches out via email
after they are accepted and writes to them in both English and
Chinese. After that comes the fun part.
“I receive plenty of replies, many with questions,” Huang
says. “I enjoy reading and responding – it’s a chance for me to
get to know the kids, help shape their dreams and implement
their plans. I correspond closely with Admissions to make sure
the information I provide is up to date, but I also provide my
own perspectives. Many of our admitted students have similar
concerns, hopes, confusions, and plans as I did. My favorite
part of this is trying to persuade them not to make too many
plans. Their plans will change after their experiences here.
Education is all about discovering.”
Huang, a St. Lawrence trustee, has done
this outreach for two years. In his second
year, the Center for International and
Intercultural Studies’ Director of Asia Pro-
grams Helen Huang (no relation) joined in
his efforts. “She’s able to provide students
with more of a general perspective on a
liberal arts education,” he says.
Taking this on has been exciting for
St. Lawrence. This year there are 45
Chinese students on campus, the second
highest number of students from another
country, behind only Canada. Of those,
28 are members of the Class of 2017.
“Last year, Admissions received 30
percent more applications from Chinese
students, which was a breakthrough for us,” Hook Huang says.
"With the increase in applications, we’re able to become more
selective and craft the class that best fits St. Lawrence and our
educational goals.”
In Other News
Basketball Locker Rooms to Be Renovated
The men’s and women’s basketball locker rooms in Augs-
bury Physical Education Center are due for renovation.
The cost of each project is about $100,000. St. Lawrence
gratefully acknowledges commitments toward the men’s
locker room from Joseph “J.D.” Delmonico ’03 and Pat-
rick Delmonico ’06. For more information, contact Andy
Whittier at
or 315-229-5511.
Nature Up North Project Seeks Support
Nature Up North (
), a new
environmental and web-based initiative led by a group of
faculty, staff and students at St. Lawrence, was created to
foster a deeper connection to the North Country envi-
ronment (for more, see the Fall 2013
St. Lawrence
, page
8). Nature Up North focuses on programs, activities and
communications that will help grow a bio-regionally liter-
ate community committed to protecting the wild things
and wild places that define this place we call home. Visit
News continued...
the project website to share your experiences in nature and
to learn how you can get involved in recording and captur-
ing information about the North Country environment.
To make a gift to support Nature Up North, contact Tom
Pynchon at
or 315-229-5582.
Calling All Saints Gets High-Tech Assist
Last fall, returning Calling All Saints callers experienced a
change in their routine. Instead of sitting at desks equipped
with a telephone and stacks of paper documents with names
of alumni, they were trained on the new CampusCall
automated calling system powered by RuffaloCody. Names
are loaded into the system and calls are made through the
computer. No worries; you are still talking to a St. Lawrence
student, but the process is faster and more efficient. When
that student calls, ask about the new CampusCall auto-
mated system.
–Anne Clements
David Pynchon '13
PHILANTHROPY IN ACTION
Laurentians for Life Week
Join us for a four-day celebration about what it
means to be a Laurentian for Life and honor one of
our most important traditions – Charter Day!
March 31 – April 3, 2014
For more information:
alumni.stlawu.edu
#laurentianforlife
A Nature Up North Adirondack hike.
