We talk a lot about legacy at universities. Legacy is the lasting impact that people’s actions have long beyond their lives. Legacy can be encouraging your children, grandchildren or friends to attend Bellarmine for undergraduate or graduate degrees. Or a legacy can be designating a gift in your estate plan. Sometimes, it is all three.
Earlier this fall, I had the pleasure of celebrating the legacy at Bellarmine of Dr. Allan Lansing and his wife, Donna Lansing, the namesakes of our Lansing School of Nursing and Clinical Sciences. We gathered with their family on Sept. 5 to dedicate new Lansing School signage in Miles Hall and to unveil plans for a lobby display case for items from our Lansing Archival Collection.
Dr. Lansing, an internationally renowned cardiothoracic surgeon, died in 2022, a year after his wife passed away. A $3.6 million gift from their estate in 2023 brought their family’s lifetime giving total to Bellarmine to more than $10 million, making them the largest individual donors in the university’s history.
That gift also contributed to making fiscal year 2024 the most successful fundraising year in Bellarmine University’s history. Bellarmine received more than $18 million total from companies, foundations and individuals such as Dr. Mushtaque Juneja ’00 MBA, whose $1.725 million gift is supporting the new Doctor of Nursing Practice-Nurse Anesthesia program that is now named for him.
As is the case with many donors, the Lansings’ legacy goes beyond the monetary. Dr. Lansing’s keen appreciation for the role of nurses sparked a passion for healthcare education. As a longtime Bellarmine trustee, he helped to establish the university’s nursing curriculum and watched the program grow in size and reputation.
He and Donna Lansing also established several scholarship funds at Bellarmine, most notably the Lansing Scholars Program. Through the Norton Hospital Foundation, that program helps cover Scholars’ costs while they work toward degrees in nursing and the health sciences. Upon graduation, they begin their careers at Norton Healthcare and are eligible to have their loans forgiven. The Lansings enjoyed meeting the Scholars at a reception each year.
The generosity of the Lansings has changed the lives of countless students and patients throughout our city and will continue to do so for many years to come. We are so grateful to them and their family, and to all those who are building legacies at Bellarmine.
Photo: Dr. Donovan chats with Dr. Carly Mitchell, program administrator for Bellarmine’s Nurse Anesthesia Program, the Lansings’ daughter Michele Lansing Flowers and her husband, Kelly.