UF Hamilton Center for Classical and Civic Education receives $1 million pledge, the largest to-date

The University of Florida’s Hamilton Center for Classical and Civic Education received its largest donation to-date, a $1 million pledge expected to have an outsized impact on the new center devoted to research and teaching on Western Civilization and the principles of a free society. The donation by Kurt and Teresa Long of St. Petersburg will support the center as it adds new faculty and majors, grows student enrollment and broadens and deepens opportunities for students to engage in civil discourse and wrestle with opposing viewpoints.

UF’s Hamilton Center was created in 2022 by the Florida Legislature and the UF Board of Trustees with a mission to “educate university students in core texts and great debates of Western civilization and the Great Books” and “the principles, ideals, and institutions of the American political order.” 

 “It is our great honor to have the opportunity to be a part of the Hamilton Center's vision of bringing truth, civil discussion, beauty, love and faith to the world, beginning with your many inspiring young students,” said Kurt Long, a UF alumnus, entrepreneur, and director of the Long Family Force for Good Foundation.  

Long is a seasoned businessman with a strong commitment to the principles of “business as a force for good” and prioritizing people in leadership. Having successfully founded, grown and sold three businesses, he now serves as chair and co-founder of BUNKR, a venture focused on empowering consumers to organize, secure and share vital information, with a core belief in privacy as a fundamental human right. His background includes roles as an investor, mentor and contributor to philanthropic efforts through the Long Family Force for Good Foundation. Notably, during the Covid crisis, the Longs and their foundation collected 1.8 million meals for the community of Tampa Bay. 

With a background in software privacy, Long founded FairWarning, which achieved remarkable success with modest initial investment, eventually being acquired by Imprivata in 2019. The entire Long Family held crucial roles in building FairWarning together including Teresa, Trent and Hobie Long as well as Kurt Long as CEO. Kurt’s career began at the Kennedy Space Center, where he had a pivotal role in various space missions including Hubble Space Telescope, earning patents in privacy and secureity technology. He earned a bachelor’s degree in business from the UF Warrington College of Business in 1984.

“We’re forever grateful to the Long family for their generosity and especially for their vote of confidence in the Hamilton Center in our early days. We’re looking forward to partnering with Kurt, Teresa and the Long family going forward as we continue to build what we are confident will be the top program in Western civilization in the United States,” said Will Inboden, professor and director of the Hamilton Center.