Giving to Bond
Giving to Bond
“If we can educate one more child, we have done something for the future of the world.”
- Dr Soheil Abedian, Patron of the Abedian School of Architecture
Giving today changes tomorrow
Every day, Bond strives to push the boundaries; to explore new ground; to unleash the potential of our students and bring their ambitions to life; to create a better society for the generations to come.
As a private, not-for-profit university, we receive no government subsidies for student places. All of our funding comes from tuition fees and philanthropic contribution – 100 per cent of which are re-invested in teaching, research and facilities.
Since our establishment in 1989, we have built a global community of supporters who share our belief that education is the key to positively impacting our world.
We invite you to join us by investing in the next generation of leaders and change-makers to create a future where opportunities are limitless.
Donors making an impact
Dr Patrick Corrigan AM
Dr Patrick Corrigan was born in the United Kingdom and came to Australia as a teenager. He went on to become an art collector, philanthropist, and businessman. Today, as many as 900 of his artworks are on loan to galleries and public spaces across the country, with key pieces forming the Corrigan Walk at Bond University – the largest private collection of Indigenous Australian art on public display.
As Dr Corrigan’s links to Bond have strengthened over the years, so has his appreciation of the educational disadvantages faced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
Dr Corrigan is Patron of the Bond University Indigenous Gala which has raised more than $3 million for scholarships, grants and bursaries since 2010. “It feels terrific”, seeing Indigenous scholars graduate, he says. Additionally, he gets a similar thrill donating artworks.
“It makes me happy. When I’ve given it away and they like it and they hang it well, I think it’s a perfect solution.”
Dr John Kearney OAM
Dr John Kearney OAM
The Kearney family’s connection with Bond University stretches back to Bond’s inception. Dr Kearney’s parents, eminent barrister Dr John F Kearney AM QC and Dr Alison Kearney, upon moving to the Gold Coast from Melbourne, immediately began campaigning for the city to have its own university. Dr Kearney’s parents are memorialised at Bond for their help to establish two University facilities: the John and Alison Kearney Library, and the John and Alison Kearney Law Library.
“We were particularly keen on a private university to provide benchmarking for tertiary education in Australia,” Dr Kearney says.
After graduating with a medicine degree and Honours in surgery, Dr Kearney moved to the Highlands of Papua New Guinea where he ran a hospital. He then established the Gold Coast Eye Clinic in 1984 and witnessed the birth of Bond where he taught at its Graduate School of Science and Technology, and he continues to teach at Bond as an Associate Clinical Professor today.
Dr Kearney’s stint in PNG sparked a lifelong commitment to addressing eye care in Outback Australia and in neighbouring developing countries. His passion for eye care has motivated Dr Kearney to fund a Fellow in Clinical Skills, anatomy and clinical skills laboratory equipment, laboratory training and research, and programs to improve the clinical skills in medicine for staff, students and researchers here at Bond. He hopes the endowment will help produce well-rounded medicine graduates to serve our communities with the highest possible care.
Margaret Douglas, Director of Optical Superstore
Margaret Douglas, Director of Optical Superstore
Margaret Douglas co-founded one of Australia’s most successful family businesses, Optical Superstore. Ms Douglas struggled financially when she was studying her medical degree in Melbourne.
“I remember the government gave me $32 a week to pay for accommodation, my food, my books, everything. My family had no funds to support me, although there was plenty of love from them. I understand very personally the value of supporting students during their studies and you can do that on so many levels.”
The experience of financial hardship as a student has motivated Ms Douglas to fund scholarships for Indigenous students at Bond.
Ms Douglas desires to help close the gap for Indigenous youth and she hopes they will use their degrees to help fellow Indigenous people.
“I want them to know that we are backing them and recognise their contribution,” she says.
The scholarships are part of the Medical Program and will cover tuition fees, accommodation, and a living bursary. The scholars will graduate as medical doctors in four years and eight months with Bond’s intensive learning program. Ms Douglas says she hopes her actions will motivate other benefactors to support the education of Indigenous students.
Dr Soheil Abedian
Patron of the Abedian School of Architecture, Dr Soheil Abedian
Dr Soheil Abedian sees the bigger picture.
“The reality of the problem that global society currently faces is the lack of education,” the philanthropist, Executive Chairman and Founder of Sunland Group says.
Dr Abedian sees education as fundamentally giving an opportunity to the next generation to think for themselves and see with their own eyes, not through the eyes of others.
What Dr Abedian saw with his own eyes was the opportunity to decorate the Gold Coast skyline with beautiful architecture and he has achieved this with Sunland’s market capitalisation of almost $300 million and a portfolio of iconic projects including Palazzo Versace and Q1.
“My father always said the biggest gift he could give us was education, now I am in a position to serve our community and put it back to the kids who maybe don’t have the means,” says Dr Abedian.
At 71, Dr Abedian is increasingly devoting his time to his charitable causes and he has signed a three-year agreement to extend a series of Master of Architecture scholarships. The students will study at the Abedian School of Architecture, of which, Dr Abedian is the patron. Additionally, Dr Abedian is mentoring 174 individuals - young students and adults. Many of the students are aspiring architects who hope one day to decorate the landscape with their own legacies.