March 10, 2014 | Read Time: 1 minute
How much: $20-million pledge
Who got it: American Enterprise Institute, a think tank in Washington.
Who gave it: Daniel D’Aniello, chairman and co-founder of the Carlyle Group, a private-equity firm in Washington.
Where the money will go: The gift is unrestricted; the institution will use the money to buy a building that will serve as the organization’s first permanent headquarters.
Donor’s connection to beneficiary: Mr. D’Aniello is vice chairman of the institute’s Board of Trustees.
Donor’s future giving plans: Mr. D’Aniello, who says he plans to give the bulk of his wealth away, says he wants to focus on groups that give people opportunities to succeed. He’s most interested in supporting arts and education groups; organizations that provide career guidance to military veterans, especially those who are disabled; and charities that help people with learning disabilities do well in school.
How the gift came about: Arthur Brooks, president of AEI, says he first met Mr. D’Aniello at a board retreat at Syracuse University, where he was a professor at the time (Mr. D’Aniello is an alumnus and a university trustee). In 2009, when Mr. Brooks was appointed president of the institute, he invited Mr. D’Aniello to join its board.
What the donor hopes his gift will accomplish: To end partisan debates about helping people to succeed. “We’re so pedantic and polarized here in Washington, where most of the arguments back and forth are what’s wrong with the other side,” Mr. D’Aniello says.
