MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — West Virginia University’s new school for policy and politics will carry the name of longtime U.S. Senator Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.).
The announcement about the new school came Saturday in Morgantown as Rockefeller formally donated his archives, from his 30 years in the U.S. Senate, to WVU’s Charles C. Wise Library.
“My career in service to West Virginia and its people was undertaken with a singular recognition that none of us exist solely for ourselves, but for the sake of others,” Rockefeller said during Saturday’s announcement.
“The goal of the John D. Rockefeller IV School of Policy and Politics is to instill that passion in others and empower them to make the world a better place.”
The John. D. Rockefeller IV School of Policy and Politics in the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences will bring together WVU’s existing academic programs in political science, public administration, international studies and leadership studies.
The West Virginia and Regional History Center within WVU’s Libraries will handle the processing, preserving and collection of Rockefeller’s senatorial archives — including papers, photographs, videos, speeches, recordings, reports, correspondence, electronic records, artifacts and other memorabilia.
At 2,000 linear feet, the collection is said to be one of the largest collections WVU has ever received.
Rockefeller has served in the U.S. Senate since 1984.
Rockefeller said his trip to Morgantown Saturday would be his last official trip to West Virginia as a U.S. Senator. He opted not to seek another term in the U.S. Senate this year. U.S. Senator-Elect Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) will take his seat in the New Year.
“West Virginia is where I found my life’s purpose, my spiritual calling,” Rockefeller said Saturday. “My life’s journey led me to West Virginia and it is in West Virginia that I hope my legacy will be remembered and my journey as a public servant understood.”