University Receives Peace Studies Gift

A bequest by a longtime Chapman University professor has grown into an endowed chair in peace studies, officials announced this week.

Paul Delp, who died in May at age 86, left $384,401 to Chapman, and that amount has been more than doubled through fund-raising, the university said.

Chapman President James Doti said the peace studies gift will be called the Delp-Wilkinson Endowed Chair. Doti said the name also commemorates the work of Harmon Wilkinson, a university trustee, and his wife, Nadine, both of whom are Chapman alumni. Harmon Wilkinson led a committee that raised more than half the funds for the endowment.

Doti said the endowed chair is being awarded to Don Will, currently an associate professor of peace studies at the university. Will, who holds a doctorate in international studies from the University of Denver, has been at Chapman since 1987.

Chapman officials said the peace-studies endowment will be used to bring world-renowned speakers to the campus and to broaden the curriculum. The money also will enable more student research and study tours, officials said.