Earl and Irene Hagman of Walnut Grove Road made history yesterday, announcing a $1.25-million donation to Western Connecticut State University — the largest gift in the school’s history.
The total donation can grow to $1.65 million if the university reaches certain goals within the next five years.
Dr. Earl Hagman
“I want to show support to the president and to the future vision of the university,” said Dr. Hagman in a press release. “I know they will do great things with our contributions and make this a world-class university.”
Part of the pledge will go toward paying for full scholarships that will be in the names of Dr. Hagman’s two daughters, both WestConn graduates, while the majority of the donation will be given as an unrestricted gift to the university.
The annual scholarships will be awarded to a psychology and biochemistry student each fall.
“With the scholarships, I want to assist young, striving individuals in perpetuity, to get an education they otherwise would possibly not have been able to afford,” Dr. Hagman said. “My goal for this pledge is to invest in our future — in the education of our children.
“I also want to inspire other community leaders to invest in our local university by setting a higher bar for giving to WCSU,” he added.
Veronica Hagman was a psychology major who died in her senior year. She was awarded posthumous graduation.
Her sister, Melissa, graduated with a bachelor’s degree in biology, which allowed her to pursue work in the pharmaceutical field.
“I would not describe myself as a wealthy individual, but more as a fortunate immigrant businessman, who not only wants to show my gratitude to President [James] Schmotter and to his staff and to the university for the support during the dark period when my daughter passed some nine years ago, but also to demonstrate our strong belief in education and in the future of this university,” Dr. Hagman said.
“Both my daughters received excellent educations at Western, and I would like this gift to help other young people to have the same access to the university’s wonderful professors and programs as my children did.
“I know from my own life experience that education is a critical key component that will allow an individual to rise to their greatest potential.”
Dr. Hagman earned a master of science degree in electrical engineering from Lund University in his native Sweden before obtaining a master’s degree in business administration from Pace University and a doctorate from Northeastern University.
He founded Ergotech Inc. in Danbury in 2000 after working for Asea Brown Boveri and Curtis Instruments.
The firm designs and builds “ergonomic technology” — equipment used to make jobs easier, safer, less demanding on workers’ bodies.
In July, he announced plans to move his plant to a site on Route 7 in Ridgefield, but the plan was withdrawn a month later in the face of vehement neighborhood rejection.
“It is about creating a humanly friendly work environment, so the human body can rest or relax or be in a normal posture instead of straining your body so that later on excessive use will cause back injury or tendinitis,” Dr. Hagman said about his business last summer. “We are very diversified. We have six product families and each one serves a particular purpose in the field of factory ergonomics.”
WestConn president James W. Schmotter held a press conference yesterday afternoon on the school’s Midtown campus to accept the Hagmans’ gift, celebrating in front of faculty, students, staff, and local officials.
“With the Hagmans’ leadership, we will continue to grow and to invest in our students,” Dr. Schmotter said in a press release. “This generous act says to our students that they are right to believe in themselves, and that others expect them to do great things with their lives.”