IU honors five loyal volunteers and supporters as 2013 Partners in Philanthropy

  • Nov. 4, 2013

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. --  On Nov. 1, Indiana University and the Indiana University Foundation honored five individuals as the 2013 Partners in Philanthropy. Indiana University President Michael A. McRobbie and IU Foundation President and CEO Daniel C. Smith presented the awards, recognizing exceptional volunteer leaders whose vital service and contributions help shape the future of the university at the highest levels.

"The five individuals recognized as this year's Partners in Philanthropy represent the very best ideals upon which Indiana University has operated for nearly two centuries," IU President Michael A. McRobbie said. "Their steadfast commitment to the well-being of others, as demonstrated through their extraordinary acts of generosity and volunteerism, has contributed greatly to the university's service mission and has strengthened communities across Indiana. We are proud to call them friends of Indiana University and are enormously grateful for their ongoing support."

Honorees received one of three awards for exceptional volunteers and friends of IU: the Cornerstone, Keystone and Herman B Wells Awards. Each year nominations are solicited from all IU campuses. The recipients are selected by a committee composed of representatives from Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, IU Bloomington and regional campuses.

“Our Partners in Philanthropy have demonstrated a lifelong commitment to improving the human condition through research and education at Indiana University,” said Dan Smith president and CEO of the IU Foundation. “Right now, empowered by private support, IU researchers are making discoveries that will touch countless lives and student teachers are learning to inspire our next generation of young minds. Our Partners in Philanthropy, through their generous gifts of time, advocacy and private support, are setting in motion a ripple effect that will live on for years to come. And we are immeasurably grateful.”

Cornerstone Award

Dr. Rafat Abonour and James R. Hodge received the Cornerstone Award, which recognizes those individuals whose partnership and volunteer involvement have been instrumental in the success of a single IU philanthropic initiative for a campus, program or school.

A highly sought-after consultant by oncologists worldwide, Abonour has dedicated his professional life to groundbreaking research and first-rate patient care. Abonour is director of the IU Melvin and Bren Simon Cancer Center Adult Clinical Research Office, associate dean of clinical research and associate professor of medicine, pathology and laboratory medicine at the IU School of Medicine. His research is focused on autologous stem cell transplantation (using one’s own bone marrow cells in a transplant) and hematologic (blood) malignancies.

Abonour established the first clinic devoted to multiple myeloma patients in the state of Indiana, championing a new mode of treatment that is now being used by other groups around the world and serving as a source of inspiration for further research. In addition, with the help of a committee of his patients and their family members, he initiated the Miles for Myeloma fundraising event, personally running and bicycling to several Indiana cities. When discussing Miles for Myeloma, Abonour said to a room full of his patients, “Since all of you travel so many miles to come to me all the time, why don’t I try coming to you?”

Starting in 2005, he and his fellow cyclists have covered more than 1,600 miles on Hoosier roadways and have raised more than $2.3 million from more than 9,500 donors to support the challenge of curing this rare and currently incurable blood cancer. Abonour also played a key role in securing planned gifts that will total an additional $1 million when realized.

View a video biography of Rafat Abonour.

Hodge is a passionate alumnus, devoted volunteer and loyal supporter of IU and the Kelley School of Business. He set the philanthropic bar for his peers on the Kelley School of Business Dean’s Council during the Matching the Promise Campaign for Bloomington as both a donor and volunteer. Proactively providing introductions to fellow alumni and assisting with follow-up that led to additional gifts, he was instrumental in the Kelley School achieving its campaign goal.

Hodge is also a member of the IU Foundation Board of Directors, serving on the investment committee. Always willing to heed IU’s call, Hodge frequently hosts visiting IU students interested in learning more about the hedge fund industry. The Hodge Hall Undergraduate Center, which is still under construction, was named in honor of his lifelong commitments to the Kelley School of Business. Thanks to Hodge’s support, the new facility will add vital classroom space and a student commons; improved technology that will allow real-time interaction with business leaders and other students around the globe; a room to host large gatherings and conferences; and a home for the Indiana Business Research Center.

In April, Hodge was inducted into the Kelley School’s Academy of Alumni Fellows. Hodge is president and chairman of the investment committee at Permal Asset Management in New York. He manages the firm’s flagship product, Permal Investment Holding. Hodge earned a Bachelor of Science in finance from the Kelley School of Business in 1974 and a master in business administration from Harvard University in 1979.

View a video biography of James R. Hodge.

Keystone Award

The Keystone Award, which recognizes those individuals who have shown exemplary volunteer leadership through multiple IU fundraising campaigns, was presented to Jamia Jasper Case Jacobsen and Adam Arceneaux.

A life member of the IU Alumni Association, Jacobsen has served on the IU Alumni Association’s Executive Council, as president of the School of Education’s Alumni Association Board of Directors and as an active volunteer with the Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority. Jacobsen has also worked tirelessly to aid in raising private support for IU. In honor of her late father, she organized and led the effort to establish the Paul George Jasper Scholarship at the Maurer School of Law. Among other engagements, Jacobsen chaired the School of Education’s inaugural 50-year class anniversary scholarship committee in 2012, raising funds to support high-ability students pursuing a career in teaching.

Professionally, her passion for education and counseling is focused on the prevention of child abuse. Jacobsen founded the Central Indiana Family Support Center, serving as director of this eight-county Child Abuse and Neglect Center from 1980 until 1986. President Ronald Reagan appointed her to serve on the U.S. Advisory Board on Child Abuse and Neglect from 1986 through 1990. Jacobsen then went on to found The Family Counseling Center Inc., where she served as president until 2004.

Jacobsen, the author of hundreds of published articles and author/editor of three books, has served as adjunct faculty at IU Bloomington, IUPUI and IU Kokomo. Jacobsen holds three degrees from the IU School of Education: BA'62, MS'75 and PhD'83.

View a video biography of Jamia Jasper Case Jacobsen.

Since his days as a student at the Robert H. McKinney School of Law, Adam Arceneaux has led efforts to generate philanthropic support for IU. Arceneaux has continued that leadership in several capacities: serving as McKinney Law’s volunteer Law Firm Campaign chair at Ice Miller LLP soliciting annual support from fellow alumni; serving on the steering committee of the Building Indiana’s Capital Law School campaign to support the construction of McKinney Law’s Lawrence W. Inlow Hall; serving the successful IMPACT Campaign for IUPUI on behalf of McKinney Law; and being one of the first to volunteer when McKinney Law established a new class agent program for peer solicitations of classmates.

Among other engagements, Arceneaux is also past president of the McKinney School of Law Alumni Association board of directors. His loyalty on behalf of IU has yielded tremendous results in both annual appeals and in capital campaigns. In addition, Arceneaux and his wife have led by example through their own strong philanthropic support of multiple projects, including a generous pledge to the Gerald L. Bepko Endowed Chair at McKinney Law.

In 2008, Arceneaux was honored with the McKinney School of Law’s Spirit of Philanthropy Award. He is a partner at Ice Miller LLP. As an attorney, his professional focus is helping businesses achieve their goals through the strategic use of litigation, alternative dispute resolution and litigation avoidance planning. Arceneaux earned a Bachelor of Science in business analysis and marketing from the Kelley School of Business in 1988 and a Doctor of Jurisprudence from the Robert H. McKinney School of Law in 1993.

View a video biography of Adam Arceneaux.

Herman B Wells Visionary Award

Ernestine Raclin received the Herman B Wells Visionary Award, which recognizes those whose lifetime volunteer commitment to IU reveals a deep understanding of the power of philanthropy to shape the future of the institution and a determination to see that future realized.

More than 40 years ago, a strongly held belief in the power of education led Raclin to begin her role as a champion for IU. She is a visionary who helped shape the IU South Bend campus and the wider community it serves. Raclin’s contributions to the university include her influential leadership, wise counsel and charitable giving.

She and her late husband, O.C. Carmichael, were forceful negotiators for a regional campus of IU in South Bend during the early 1970s. They worked toward land acquisition during the critical developmental phase of the campus that now educates an average of 8,000 students annually. Among Raclin’s numerous volunteer engagements with IU and the South Bend community, she chaired IU South Bend’s first capital campaign in 2002, helping to achieve 105 percent of the $5 million goal. Motivated by her passion for helping students and promoting the arts, Raclin gave a generous gift in honor of which the Ernestine M. Raclin School of the Arts at IU South Bend received its name.

Raclin is chairman emerita of the 1st Source Corp. She holds several honorary degrees, including a Doctor of Laws from IU South Bend.

View a video biography of Ernestine Raclin.

About the IU Foundation: 

Founded in 1936, the Indiana University Foundation maximizes private support for Indiana University by fostering lifelong relationships with key stakeholders and providing advancement leadership and fundraising services for campuses and units across the university. Today, the foundation oversees one of the largest public university endowments in the country with a market value in excess of $1.7 billion. In fiscal year 2013, IU received $305.9 million in support from the private sector. IU is consistently ranked among the top four of Big Ten universities in annual voluntary support.

Indiana University's 2013 Partners in Philanthropy are, from left, Adam Arceneaux, Jamia Jasper Case Jacobsen, James R. Hodge and Rafat Abonour. Not pictured is Ernestine Raclin.

Indiana University's 2013 Partners in Philanthropy are, from left, Adam Arceneaux, Jamia Jasper Case Jacobsen, James R. Hodge and Rafat Abonour. Not pictured is Ernestine Raclin.

Print Quality Photo

Kathy Gutowsky