Retired instructor’s gift totals $5.2 million for ECU’s music school

Retired instructor’s gift totals $5.2 million for ECU’s music school
Published: Apr. 12, 2021 at 11:02 AM EDT
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GREENVILLE, N.C. (WITN) - A gift from a retired East Carolina University faculty member has ended up totaling $5.2 million.

Bea Chauncey taught at the School of Music for 41 years as a flute instructor.

Not only was Chauncey proficient at playing the flute, but she also was very good at playing the stock market and investing money, according to ECU.

In 2011, the woman committed $500,000 toward the university in her will. ECU says that gift amount was conservative because Chauncey didn’t want to “overpromise” in case of any market fluctuations, or end-of-life costs.

Chauncey died in 2017 at the age of 94, and because of the estate’s complexity, the distribution process didn’t begin until last year.

The amount totaled $5.2 million which will be used for scholarships at the School of Music.

ECU said Chauncey, who started working there in 1949, helped grow a small music department into one of the premier music schools in the Southeast.

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