A Lincoln residence has been purchased and will serve as the official residence for the University of Nebraska president. The home, at 2810 S. 27th Street, was purchased with private funds, including a major gift from a donor to the University of Nebraska Foundation. The foundation will own the home, which will include appropriate space for hosting a wide range of university events, guest quarters and private quarters for the president’s family.
From about the mid-1960s to the mid-1990s, NU presidents lived in homes donated to and owned by the NU Foundation. In 1996, the foundation-owned university residence burned in an electrical fire; instead of replacing the home, a housing allowance was instituted. In September 2012 the Board of Regents voted to return to the practice of providing an official residence for the NU president using non-state funds, to accommodate the volume of university business and entertainment that occurs in a president’s residence. Currently, the university president hosts university faculty, visitors, donors and students in his private residence.
“The president is expected to host a wide range of events that benefit the University of Nebraska,” said Tim Clare, chairman of the Board of Regents. “Providing an official residence is widely recognized to be a necessary part of supporting the president in carrying out his or her responsibilities. Most large universities around the country – including nearly all Big Ten universities – follow this practice.”
The NU Foundation purchased the approximately 7,000-square-foot home for $750,000 with private funds.
Brian Hastings, president of the foundation, said, “With the help of a private donor, the University of Nebraska Foundation looks forward to being able to provide a location to meet the needs of the University of Nebraska and expand on business and entertaining opportunities in the future.”
