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Sustainability

Anne E. Davenport Natural Areas Support Fund established with $100,000 endowment

The Natural Areas are ‘part of the extracurricular ambiance that makes Miami so different and so special,’ said donor Anne Davenport ’78, MBA ’83

by Susan Meikle, University Communications and Marketing • Published
Trailhead and bulletin board near Marcum Trails
Marcum Loops Trailhead (photo by Scott Kissell)
Sustainability

Anne E. Davenport Natural Areas Support Fund established with $100,000 endowment

Marcum Loops Trailhead (photo by Scott Kissell)
by Susan Meikle, University Communications and Marketing • Published

Thanks to a recent endowment gift of $100,000, the Anne E. Davenport Natural Areas Support Fund was established to support the Miami University Natural Areas. 

“Although I owe my successful career to the Miami University Accounting Department,” donor Anne Davenport ’78, MBA ’83 said, “it was the natural areas around Marcum Center, the gardens, the woods, the creek, and the pastures that soothed my soul during my 20 years spent at Miami as a student, an instructor, and in administration.”

 Miami's Natural Areas comprise nearly 1,000 acres — about half of the 2,000- acre Oxford campus — and more than 23 miles of hiking trails. Established in 1992 by the Miami University Board of Trustees, the designated greenbelt lands are protected in perpetuity. The Natural Areas Committee is responsible for oversight and management of the Natural Areas.

 “These areas are part of the extracurricular ambiance that makes Miami so different and so special,” Davenport said. 

Davenport, now retired, received a bachelor of arts in Psychology and Mathematics in 1978, and her MBA in Accounting/Tax in 1983.  She served as an instructor in Accountancy from 1995-1998 and was tax compliance coordinator for Miami from 1998-2005. She served as tax manager for the University of North Carolina at Charlotte from 2005-2008 and as tax director at Wake Forest University from 2008-2018. 

"I am very grateful, on behalf of the Natural Areas Committee, for Anne Davenport's very generous gift,” said David Gorchov, professor of Biology and chair of the committee. “Her endowment will enhance our ability to maintain and improve the trails in Miami University's Natural Areas, increasing the accessibility of the Natural Areas to everyone.”

The annual distribution generated from the fund is designated to support the management and care of the Natural Areas, with preference given to supporting the upkeep and maintenance of the Marcum Center’s woods, garden, and trails. 

The Timothy Marcum Memorial Center and Trail trailhead is located behind the Marcum Hotel and Conference Center. It runs through a tract of steep slopes and flood plains that extend south to State Route 73. 

“This natural area is extremely important because it lends additional protection to Four Mile Creek and contains excellent habitats for study and research,” Gorchov said.  

“Gifts — both recent and historical; both large and small — provide nearly all of the financial support for the Natural Areas,” he said. 

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