COLUMBIA — The Reynolds Journalism Institute will receive $15 million from the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation, the foundation president said Friday.
The grant will be distributed evenly over five years beginning July 1, 2010, foundation President Steve Anderson said . This will continue the foundation's funding of staff salaries and operating costs for the institute, which is part of the Missouri School of Journalism and located on the northeast end of Francis Quadrangle.
"This gift from the Reynolds Foundation makes it possible for us to pursue our dream of an institute that supports democracies around the world by developing and testing 21st century models and technologies of journalism to serve civil society," MU Chancellor Brady Deaton said in a statement.
“It is a vote of confidence in the leadership and programs," Anderson said.
RJI was created in 2004 with a $31 million gift from the foundation, the largest gift in MU history.
The initial donation funded the institute's construction and renovation, high-tech equipment and operating costs for six years.
The $15 million picks up where the previous funding left off and will allow the institute to continue its programs. "We want to tell the industry our doors our open and we're ready to do business," Pam Johnson, RJI executive director, said in a statement.
The institute will have to reapply for support before the new grant expires in June 2014, Anderson said.