The University of Akron will build a new museum dedicated to American Indian artifacts thanks to a $5 million gift and a loan of more than 800 relics.
Jim and Vanita Oelschlager, who are among the school’s largest donors, made the gift to create The Oak Native American Museum.
The museum will house rare American Indian artifacts from the Oelschlagers’ personal collection. The items include art, tools, ceremonial objects, books, clothing and pottery.
The collection, which hasn’t been appraised, will be open to the public.
UA President Matthew Wilson announced the gift and museum Wednesday at the board of trustees meeting.
“We decided that the University of Akron would be the appropriate organization to house, display and study our Native American collection,” Jim Oelschlager, who did not attend the meeting, said in a prepared statement. “It will provide students an opportunity to learn how to manage, research and display these historical items from different parts of the continent, thus preparing them to be able to work on other collections.”
Jim Oelschlager is the founder of Oak Associates Ltd., a mutual fund and investment firm in Bath Township, while Vanita is a children’s book author. Last year, they received the 49th Bert A. Polsky Humanitarian Award.
Over the decades, they have donated millions of dollars to local causes, charities and scholarships.
The Oelschlagers have been longtime supporters of the university, and the Oelschlager Summer Leadership Institute bears the family name.
The museum will be part of the Institute for Human Science and Culture. It will be located at the Drs. Nicholas and Dorothy Cummings Center for the History of Psychology.
The project will involve renovating the third and fourth floors to feature galleries, a reading room, classrooms and a workshop and adding a full-time curator.
UA expects to begin construction next year. No opening date is set.
“Important collections — including those from the new museum — will be housed at the institute, all providing historical understanding and portrayals of human science and culture,” Cummings Center Executive Director David Baker said in a prepared statement. “This will promote the examination of humanity from multiple perspectives — psychological, anthropological, artistic and historical.”
Rick Armon can be reached at 330-996-3569 or rarmon@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter at @armonrickABJ .