CHUCK & ME

Former DCU president Danny O'Hare on Chuck Feeney, the university's greatest benefactor

One of the people who can deservedly pat themselves on the back for what DCU accomplished in its first 25 years is a man who is the least likely to actually do so - the Irish-American benefactor Chuck Feeney. His massive donations during the 1980s and 1990s had a transformational effect not only on DCU but on all Irish universities, and also in other countries like South Africa and Vietnam. Though the focus of his giving has now moved away from higher education, the institutions he so generously funded will continue to benefit for many years to come.

Of all his generosity to Irish education, Chuck Feeney gave most to DCU. As a result we were able to develop new and exciting ideas with some confidence that support for them would be forthcoming. In short, he allowed us to dream our dreams and to put them into action. Without his help, DCU would be a much less impressive place than it is.

Among Chuck's most significant interventions in Irish education were:

His help with the Ballymun Initiative in third-level education

This first substantial higher-education student-access programme in Ireland became the model emulated nationwide.

His funding of student accommodation projects

He ensured that the student accommodation projects could be funded through rental income since he had reduced, in effect, the capital costs of the projects.

His funding of academic buildings

His partial funding of many buildings - which government should have funded in full - persuaded government to contribute to these buildings by matching his contributions. Such joint funding of buildings became the norm and transformed the campuses of many universities.

His generation of the Programme for Research in Third-Level Institutions

Through his €100million-plus contribution, he transformed the Ireland's research landscape.

He also incidentally generated a quite undeserved reputation for me as a fundraiser; he made me and other university presidents look good. This was because he steadfastly refused any expressions of public recognition, masking his donations behind his philanthropic foundation, Atlantic Philanthropies, which was content to carry out very discreetly its mission to bring about lasting changes in the lives of disadvantaged and vulnerable people.

One unfortunate side-effect of this self-effacement was that, when his role eventually became public over the past few years, Chuck Feeney somehow got the reputation of being reclusive and eccentric.

On the contrary, the man I knew was an ordinary guy - albeit with extraordinary resources and great talent - who remained an ordinary guy even though he accumulated huge wealth. Most certainly not an eccentric or a recluse.

An engaging, relaxed, frank, feeling person with a true concern for the needs of his fellow human beings and a good sense of humour. He is hugely well read, with a voracious appetite for the written word. An exceptionally modest man; and, yes, shy with it all.

But he is impatient with the many wealthy people who seem to get their greatest pleasure from counting their money. He is a lesson to all of us and to the many who lose the run of themselves if they make a lot of money or when they are appointed to influential jobs.