The family of Alan Hassenfeld, retired chairman and CEO of Hasbro, will donate $12.5 million to Brown University to create an institute devoted to combating childhood asthma, autism, and obesity.
The announcement of the establishment of the institute was made at the State House on Monday afternoon at a press conference attended by Hassenfeld, Governor Raimondo and Brown University President Christina Paxson. Also present were top state health officials and the leaders of the initiative.
“With Alan Hassenfeld’s generosity and vision, we will bring the strength of Brown’s research expertise together with our affiliated hospital and community partners as never before to transform child health in Rhode Island,” Paxson said in statement. “This is an unprecedented opportunity for cross-institutional collaboration to address critical health needs of a vulnerable population.”
Raimondo said, “This new collaboration has my full support, especially as a mom of two young kids. Every child should have the opportunity to thrive and grow up healthy. Not only will this innovative institute help give kids that chance, but it also showcases the incredible talent we have here in Rhode Island, and will help attract new talent to the state. That’s a win for families, academia and our economy.”
