In a move that will go a long way toward furthering the Meadows School of the Arts piano department’s reputation as one of the finest in the nation, SMU alumna Jeanne Roach Johnson made her second donation of $1 million in as many years.
Meadows Benefactor’s Gift to Advance Division of Music
In a move that will go a long way toward furthering the Meadows School of the Arts piano department’s reputation as one of the finest in the nation, SMU alumna Jeanne Roach Johnson made her second donation of $1 million in as many years.
Johnson’s donation has been earmarked for the purpose of allowing Meadows music majors to prepare better for their performances. Half of the donation will be spent to renovate the Meadows practice room area to improve aesthetics, ventilation, acoustics and security. The other $500,000 will go toward the establishment of the Jeanne Johnson Piano Guest Artist Endowment Fund, which will bring outstanding guest artists in piano to perform and teach on a visiting basis in the school’s Division of Music.
“Jeanne Johnson’s vision and generosity will bring added distinction to the Meadows School and its Division of Music,” SMU president R. Gerald Turner said. “We are grateful to her for further advancing the piano program nationally and internationally.”
Meadows Dean Carole Brandt echoed Turner’s sentiments about Johnson’s generosity.
“Jeanne Johnson’s exceptional support of the Meadows School’s Division of Music will enable us to maintain the excellent reputation of our piano performance program for years to come,” Brandt said. “The array of visiting guest musicians who will perform and teach will represent an additional opportunity for our talented piano students to learn from artists worldwide. And, the new practice rooms will greatly enhance the experience of the students who spend countless hours in them honing their skills.”
Last year’s gift from Johnson was divided into two funds. Most of the donation – $750,000 – was designated for the establishment of the Jeanne Johnson Piano Program Special Initiatives Fund, which will generate income in perpetuity to benefit the piano program, while the remaining $250,000 was used to purchase concert-quality pianos for use in performance spaces, faculty studios and student practice rooms, and to support the maintenance of the Music Division’s piano inventory.
A private investor in Dallas, Johnson graduated in 1954 from what is now SMU’s Cox School of Business. She serves on the Meadows School of the Arts Executive Board and is a member of SMU’s Dallas Hall Society.