Raines gift supports KSG library, book fund:

Franklin and Wendy Raines have made a generous gift to the Kennedy School of Government to support the library and other critical areas of the School’s public service mission, Dean Joseph S. Nye Jr. announced Monday (Jan. 27).

Nye said the main reading room at the Kennedy School library will be named in recognition of this gift, and a Raines Family Book Fund will be created to support the acquisition of public policy books and other books to assist student and faculty research. The Raines gift will also make possible the restoration of “After-Hours Study Hall,” which was curtailed this year as a cost-saving measure in response to the School’s budget difficulties.

Franklin Raines is the chairman and CEO of Fannie Mae, America’s largest source of financing for home mortgages. Raines was director of the Office of Management and Budget in the Clinton administration. He has served as chairman of the Kennedy School’s Visiting Committee and chairman of Harvard’s Board of Overseers.

“Frank and Wendy Raines are wonderful friends of Harvard and of the Kennedy School, in particular. Frank has been a champion of the Kennedy School for many years, providing leadership to the visiting committee, insight, and expertise on policy, growth, and management issues. It is particularly gratifying to have this gift for the core needs of the School from someone who knows us so well,” commented Nye.

Franklin Raines adds, “I have been an admirer of the Kennedy School since its origins in the original Littauer building. The library is the heart of any academic institution, and we are happy to be able to help keep the Kennedy School library healthy.”

“The generous Raines donation will ensure that the library can offer an up-to-date and convenient collection of materials to support the teaching and research activities of the Kennedy School,” said Kennedy School librarian Ellen Isenstein. “It will enable us to again offer the late-night hours that have been so popular with students in the past.”