$1M gift to boost science programs and upgrade K-12 schools at FAU
Florida Atlantic University has received a major gift to enhance science programs and to help build a new facility for its prestigious K-12 schools.
FAU received $1 million from Daniel Cane, CEO and cofounder of Modernizing Medicine, a healthcare technology company, and his wife, Debra Cane. The gift will establish The Cane Institute for Advanced Technologies at Henderson University School, which serves K-8 students, and FAU High. This will serve as the school’s epicenter for research, education and technology, officials say.
The institute will focus on such areas as cybersecurity, autonomous vehicles, robotics, virtual reality, augmented reality, automation and artificial intelligence.
“The quality of education that the faculty and staff at Henderson and FAU High provide will prepare our children and other students for a lifetime of success,” Daniel Cane said. “This gift will build on the already stellar program and hopefully encourage other parents and supporters of STEM and public education to contribute and help raise the profile of South Florida’s world-class schools.”
The gift will also be used to help the university construct a new state-of-the-art campus for the 50-year-old Henderson school. The district’s capital campaign,“Let’s Build This Together,” seeks to raise money for a $41.5 million facility, which would add a gymnasium and 600-seat auditorium for the high school.
Two newer facilities would remain -- the main FAU High School building and a shared library.
The two schools are currently working with an architect to develop a master plan and timeline. No construction date has been set, officials say.
The perennially A-rated Henderson opened in 1968 as a K-8 laboratory school for FAU's College of Education. The high school, which offers students a chance to earn three years of college credit on FAU's main campus, started in 2004. Together the schools serve about 950 students from Broward and Palm Beach counties.
Henderson chooses students through a lottery, while FAU must meet
A 2013 consultant's report found the original Henderson building is in disrepair and would cost more than it's worth to renovate. The school also has a leaky roof and poor lighting, officials say.
Under the plan, the size of Henderson's main building would nearly double to 83,000 square feet to accommodate students now in portables.
Cane, a former member of the FAU Board of Trustees, has received several business awards in recent years, including the Sun Sentinel’s Excalibur Awards’ Palm Beach Small Business Leader of the Year for 2013. High students academic requirements.
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