Penn Athletics is proud to announce a significant endowment gift from Mr. and Mrs. T. Gibbs Kane, Jr., W’69 to create the T. Gibbs Kane, Jr., W’69 Director of Athletics and Recreation position at the University of Pennsylvania.
This gift will provide unrestricted funding that will enable Penn’s athletic leadership to invest in essential areas to enhance the holistic development of the 1,000 intercollegiate student-athletes and the thousands of Penn students who participate in club and intramural sports.
“I am incredibly grateful to Tory and Gibb for this gift, which will provide the resources necessary to enhance the student-athlete experience,” said Dr. M. Grace Calhoun, the T. Gibbs Kane, Jr. W’69 Director of Athletics and Recreation. “Gibb has consistently demonstrated leadership within the Penn Athletics community, and this gift highlights two key themes of our Campaign: endowment support and support that benefits multiple areas within the Division. I am thrilled to accept this gift and continue the great working relationship that Penn Athletics and Recreation has with Gibb and Tory for many years to come.”
“I deeply believe that the lessons our student-athletes learn in perseverance, teamwork, and leadership will serve them well throughout their lives,” Gibb Kane said. “I am delighted to have a hand in ensuring that the Division of Recreation and Intercollegiate Athletics has the resources necessary to provide the valuable education that takes place whenever our athletes gather to practice and compete.”
This gift is part of the Game Onward Campaign for the Future of Penn Athletics and helps bring the total dollar commitments raised to more than $113M toward the $150M goal. Their generosity also contributes to a core priority for the Campaign by raising the total athletics endowment during the campaign to over $40M. With the Game Onward Campaign scheduled to end in 2021, Penn Athletics is tracking positively towards its goals.
A key component of Gibb’s gift is establishing a discretionary fund that will enable the Director of Athletics and Recreation to identify and support strategic initiatives across Penn Athletics, including both varsity and recreational programs.
As an undergraduate, Kane was a four-year member of the Penn squash team, and his 1969 team was the last Penn men’s squash team to win the Ivy League Championship. He is a 1969 graduate of the Wharton School and co-founded Sound Shore Management, Inc., an investment advisory firm, eight years later. He serves as an Overseer for Athletics, a Co-chair for the Game Onward Campaign, and a member of the Campaign Steering Committee for The Power of Penn.
