Campaign Initiatives

Celebrating at the Golden Triangle were, from left, Provost R. Michael Tanner, Chancellor Paula Allen-Meares, Jamie Thorsen McNulty, James McNulty, Dean Dwight A. McBride.
Access the slideshow of photographs from the Golden Triangle event.

LAS Celebrates Asian Studies Gift

It may have been a cold October night with frosty rain whipping down Michigan Avenue, but inside the Golden Triangle, the warmth of the small, intimate gathering erased all traces of autumn’s ire.

On October 26, the College hosted a small get-together to officially announce James and Jamie Thorsen McNulty’s $300,000 commitment to establish the James and Jamie McNulty Fund in Asian Studies. The fund will help to increase Asian language courses at UIC and support administration of the expansion of the Asian Studies program.

The McNultys personally greeted guests as they entered the gallery. Those attending the event weaved through the various rooms brimming with eclectic Asian artifacts and decor, including an Asian gong which, at the hands of Jamie Thorsen McNulty, resonated through the inviting space.

Dean Dwight A. McBride addresses the crowd,
thanking the McNultys for their gift.

Guests took in the sights of antique Asian furniture, Chinese collectibles, and even an indoor Asian courtyard. Many of the guests expressed delight at the idea of hosting the event in a place as striking as the Golden Triangle.

Chancellor Paula Allen-Meares, Provost R. Michael Tanner, and Dean Dwight A. McBride joined the program’s new coordinator, Esther Klein, faculty related to Asian Studies, and various alums in celebrating the gift and thanking the McNultys for their generous donation.

James McNulty watches as Jamie strikes a Chinese gong.

The gift will be used to support the expansion of the Asian Studies program offerings in advanced Chinese and Japanese courses that integrate language skills with cultural and historical topics. The college also plans to hire teachers to develop and teach courses in basic and advanced Hindi and Urdu and to collaborate with the UIC College of Education to consider the creation of a Chinese teaching certificate program. Esther Klein, a scholar of Chinese history who came to UIC in the fall from Princeton University, has been hired to serve as the program coordinator.

James McNulty is chairman of NYSE Liffe U.S. and a member of the board of directors of NYSE Euronext, ICAP, and Children's Memorial Hospital. He retired in 2004 as president and chief executive officer of CME Group Inc., formerly Chicago Mercantile Exchange Holdings Inc., and its subsidiary, Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. Jamie Thorsen McNulty is executive managing director and global head of foreign exchange and China capital markets for the Bank of Montreal.

From left, Dean Dwight A. McBride and Provost
R. Michael Tanner meet with the coordinator of
the Asian Studies program, Esther Klein.

“We helped to fund the Asian Studies program at UIC because we see Chicago as an important city for global trade and risk management products,” James McNulty said. “In the next century, we see China as one of the largest potential trading partners for firms in Chicago. We think it is very important for students at UIC to have the opportunity to understand the languages, history, cultures and arts of Asia, and particularly China, so that they are prepared to succeed in business and other endeavors there in the coming years. We would like UIC to be known as a place where effective, Asia-savvy students can be found for business, science, diplomacy and the arts.”

James McNulty earned a BA in English from UIC in 1973. He is one of the inaugural members of the LAS Board of Visitors and he received the Alumni Achievement Award in 2003. The gift to LAS reflects the McNultys’ interest in helping current and future UIC students broaden their horizons by introducing them to the cultures and global markets of Asia.

Access the slideshow of photographs from the Golden Triangle event.