By Associated Press - Thursday, May 29, 2014

BURLINGTON, Vt. (AP) - A $5 million gift to the University of Vermont will help to restore two Victorian-era buildings on campus and expand scholarly research and programs for alumni, the school said Thursday.

The gift from 1964 graduate Jack Silver and his wife will support improvements to the Billings Library and renovations at the planned Alumni House.

President Tom Sullivan announced the gift - one of the largest to the school in recent years - at a reception this week hosted by the Silvers at their New York City residence.

“Jack and Shirley’s gift will transform Billings, the gemstone of the campus designed by H.H. Richardson, into a new home for the University’s Special Collections Library, which will be renamed the Jack and Shirley Silver Special Collections Library,” Sullivan said.

Sullivan said Billings will become an intellectual focal point, with the Silver Special Collections Library and two academic centers - the Carolyn and Leonard Miller Center for Holocaust Studies and the Center for Research on Vermont.

The Alumni House will be home to a number of programs from hosting educational cultural and artistic activities to offering rooms to gather in for social and reunion activities, UVM said.

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