Alfred James Clark (December 2, 1927 – March 20, 2015) was an American engineer, businessman and philanthropist. He was chairman and CEO of Clark Enterprises, Inc.,[1] headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland. The company's largest subsidiary is Clark Construction Group, LLC,[2] one of the United States' largest construction companies, founded in 1906 as the George Hyman Construction Company.
A. James Clark | |
---|---|
Born | Alfred James Clark December 2, 1927 |
Died | March 20, 2015 Easton, Maryland, US | (aged 87)
Nationality | American |
Alma mater | University of Maryland |
Children | 3 |
Clark was born on December 2, 1927, in Richmond, Virginia, US, the son of a life insurance salesman father. He grew up in Bethesda, Maryland.[3]
Clark was a 1950 graduate of the University of Maryland, College Park, where he was a member of Phi Delta Theta.[4]
In 1950, he was hired by the George Hyman Construction Company. In 1969, he became president. In 1977, he formed OMNI Construction, a double-breasted subsidiary.[5][6]
In addition to being an engineer and business executive, Clark served as a university trustee emeritus at Johns Hopkins University.[citation needed]
Clark has given to the University of Maryland, College Park's School of Engineering, which now bears his name.
He established the A. James Clark Engineering Scholars program, a program to provide financial aid to engineering and computerscience majors.[7] The program is at 11 institutions and supports 470+ students.[7]
Institution | Since | Notes | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|
Duke University | [7] | ||
George Washington University | 2011[8] | As part of $8 million donation.[9] | [7] |
Georgia Tech | 2018[10] | [7] | |
Johns Hopkins University | [7][11] | ||
Penn State | 2020[12] | As part of $15.5 million donation. [12] | [7] |
Stevens Institute of Technology | 2018[13] | [7] | |
University of Maryland | 2017 [14] | Part of a $219.5 million donation.[14][15] | [7] |
University of Pennsylvania | [7] | ||
University of Virginia | [7] | ||
Vanderbilt University | [7] | ||
Virginia Tech | [7] |
He donated $10 million toward the construction of the Johns Hopkins University building, "Clark Hall," which is the cornerstone of the Decker Quadrangle. His construction company served as general contractor for the building, which was named in his honor.[16]
On October 4, 2017, it was announced the University of Maryland would receive almost $220 million from the A. James and Alice B. Clark Foundation.[15]
In 1950, Clark married Alice Bratton.[3] They had three children and lived in Vero Beach, Florida.[17] He died of congestive heart failure in 2015.[3]
he Clark Engineering Scholars Program was established at GW in January 2011 with a generous gift from the late A. James Clark, Eng.D. '10
In 2018, the A. James & Alice B. Clark Foundation partnered with Georgia Tech to financially support students...
The inaugural cohort of Clark Scholars enrolled at Stevens in fall 2018.
The Clark Scholars Program at the University of Maryland was established as part of Building Together, the Foundation's $219.5 million investment in the University of Maryland announced October 2017.