St. Francis Xavier University (StFX) in Nova Scotia, Canada, has announced a C$14.5 million ($10.7 million) gift from the late Jeannine Deveau (’44) to create campus centers and support equity efforts.

The alumna’s bequest includes C$5 million ($3.6 million)—with another C$5 million in reserve to match additional gifts—to establish the Deveau Centre for Indigenous Governance and Social Justice, which aims to support scholars undertaking human rights research, advocacy work, and policy development. In addition, coupled with a gift from the McCall MacBain Foundation, the funding will create the Black Student Success Centre, which aims to support Black students’ academic journey by providing Afrocentric spaces and programming.

In addition, the gift includes support for many ongoing initiatives at StFX, including the John Jerome Paul Chair in Math Equity, scholarships and bursaries through the Deveau Scholars program, X-Project, the Circle of Abundance at Coady Institute, Mi’kmaq and African Nova Scotian nursing students, Kiknu, the Indigenous students’ centre, and numerous facets of student services.

In 2015, Deveau awarded StFX C$8 million ($5.9 million) to establish the Jeannine Deveau Educational Equity Endowment. Deveau died in July 2022, three weeks shy of her 99th birthday.

“The Deveau Centre, staffed by Indigenous and non-Indigenous Canadians, will serve as a generative think tank and a nexus for critical assessment of policies and governance that combat systemic discrimination and prevent racism,” said StFX president Andy Hakin. “It’s taking things forward.”

(Photo credit: Getty Images/AJ Watt)