Hobart and William Smith Colleges will use a planned gift of more than $4.5 million from the estate of Dr. Edward J. Tapper to permanently support summer science research for students.
Tapper, a 1964 Hobart graduate and physician-researcher who recently died, left most of his estate to expand the Edward J. Tapper Science Research Fund and connect his legacy to the new Fish Center for the Sciences in Geneva.
Tapper established the fund in 2018 to support students working directly with faculty mentors. It has helped cover housing, stipends and supplies for projects in biology, chemistry, geoscience and physics.
Supported research has included plant evolution and genomics, aquatic ecosystems, urban ecology, habitat fragmentation, harmful algal blooms and microplastics. The fund has also supported collaborations with Cornell University faculty at Cornell AgriTech.
Tapper had documented an anticipated gift of more than $1 million in 2022 before the larger estate contribution was realized. HWS said the endowment will provide a permanent source of funding for intensive summer work.
Tapper studied medicine and conducted research at Ohio State University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the Medical College of Wisconsin. His work helped advance understanding of connections between the gut and brain, and he later helped develop drugs in the pharmaceutical industry.
HWS President Mark Gearan said Tapper understood the value of sustained research with faculty mentors. Associate Provost Nicholas Metz said the gift would give students time to pursue scientific questions in depth and could shape their education and careers.
The Fish Center for the Sciences is under construction and is being designed for interdisciplinary teaching, research and collaboration among students and faculty.
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