December 10, 1997 Contact: Ann Marie Deer Owens (615) 322-2706 annmarie.owens@vanderbilt.edu

Danforth Foundation vice president

to be honored by VIPPS

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Robert Koff, vice president of the Danforth Foundation, will receive the 1997 Bridge Award from the Vanderbilt Institute for Public Policy Studies (VIPPS) during his visit to campus Monday, Dec. 15.

Koff will be honored for his leadership in linking good practice to policy for children and families, according to Clifford S. Russell, director of VIPPS. "The award, which was established in 1990, recognizes individuals who assist VIPPS in building bridges between policy research and education and the wider community," he said.

Koff has worked on issues of education policy, planning and assessment in the fields of public K-12 education, higher education and medicine. He was a professor and administrator at both Stanford University and the State University of New York at Albany. He served on the New York State Council on Children and Youth and chaired the New York State Educational Conference Board. In 1992 he joined the foundation staff as a program director and was named vice president earlier this year.

Koff received his bachelor's degree from the University of Michigan in psychology and chemistry. He earned his master's and doctoral degree in clinical psychology from the University of Chicago. A licensed psychologist, he is the co-author of New Ways of Paying for College.

The Danforth Foundation recently awarded a $2 million grant to VIPPS' Child and Family Policy Center to support the management of the foundation's Policymakers' Program. The program helps state leaders across the nation create a vision for children and families and define a state process for achieving that vision.

Note to editors: Koff will discuss current directions for the Danforth Foundation, including the St. Louis 2004 Project, during a special seminar on Dec. 15 from 4 to 5:15 p.m. The workshop is open by invitation only. Media wishing to attend should call Ann Marie Deer Owens at (615) 322-2706 to RSVP.

Since June 1 the Child and Family Policy Center, under the direction of Bill Purcell, has assumed responsibility for the day-to-day activities of the Policymakers' Program. These include a national meeting in January for state legislators and governors' aides, a summer institute for state teams and program evaluation.

The Danforth Foundation is a national, educational philanthropy dedicated to enhancing the humane dimensions of life. The foundation has assisted persons throughout the United States in furthering their education and extending their abilities to contribute to society. Mr. and Mrs. William H. Danforth and their daughter and son, Dorothy Danforth Compton and Donald Danforth, established the foundation in 1927.

Previous recipients of the Bridge Award have included Dr. Thomas Frist and the HCA Foundation; former Tennessee House Majority Leader Bill Purcell; Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Gilbert S. Merritt; John Seigenthaler, founder of The Freedom Forum First Amendment Center at Vanderbilt; and Keiichi Komiya, senior executive vice president of the Toshiba Corporation.

-VU-

Vanderbilt University is a private research university of approximately 5,800 undergraduates and 4,200 graduate and professional students. Founded in 1873, the University comprises 10 schools, a public policy institute, a distinguished medical center and The Freedom Forum First Amendment Center. Vanderbilt offers undergraduate programs in the liberal arts and sciences, education and human development, engineering and music, and a full range of graduate and professional degrees.

For more news about Vanderbilt, visit the News and Public Affairs home page on the Internet at http://www.vanderbilt.edu/News.