UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — John Martinson, a venture capitalist from Bucks County, has made two gifts to the Penn State College of Arts and Architecture to support the School of Theatre’s Design, Technology and Management Program and also the Penn State Blue Band.
Martinson has committed $600,000 to the School of Theatre to improve technological and pedagogical equipment. He has also committed $300,000 to the Blue Band for equipment and uniform maintenance and replacement.
As a result, spaces associated with each program will be named in his honor: the John H. Martinson Lobby of the Playhouse Theatre and the John H. Martinson Equipment Room.
“This is an exciting relationship that I hope will engage a large number of students and faculty,” Martinson said. “I aim for these gifts to inspire and advance the offerings within these programs at Penn State.”
Martinson has been a venture capitalist for more than four decades with investment interests that often focus on technology and education, and although he has no formal ties to the University, in Penn State he has found an impactful partnership.
In 2009, Martinson teamed with the Penn State College of Education to create the Martinson Family Foundation Grant in Science Education, which offers preparation in STEM education for K-8 education majors.
To build on that initiative, he committed $750,000 in 2021 to support STEM Between Us, a hybrid program that provides professional learning opportunities for current and future K-8 teachers and creates STEM enrichment partnerships between the College of Education, school districts and community organizations that serve students in Pennsylvania communities who have traditionally been marginalized in STEM.
The success of that endeavor, Martinson said, has strengthened his connection to Penn State and led to campus visits where he immersed himself in the culture of the University.
In addition to enjoying football weekends in Happy Valley, he said he has discovered the vibrant and diverse arts community by attending theatre productions and experiencing the excellence and tradition of the Blue Band.
“The leadership in the college is outstanding, and there are such fine people in the arts at Penn State who are very innovative and remarkable,” Martinson said.
After working with college administration to identify needs in the areas of the arts he has come to know and enjoy, Martinson engaged with the School of Theatre and the Blue Band in the hope that the impact of his gifts would be immediate and meaningful.
“One of my focuses has been technology, and with this partnership, there is an opportunity to infuse the performing arts with technology,” Martinson said. “I see myself as a person that hopefully jumpstarts initiatives and ideas that can become a core of the programs and help them to be sustainable.”
The Michael J. and Aimee Rusinko Kakos Dean of College of Arts and Architecture B. Stephen Carpenter II said the college is deeply grateful to Martinson for his support.
“John is a visionary. He is someone who believes in the power of an education in and through the arts,” Carpenter said. “We are excited for this partnership because it will bring opportunities to our students and others across the campus, as well as contribute to increasing the visibility and value of the arts at Penn State.”
Donors like John Martinson advance the University’s historic land-grant mission to serve and lead. Through philanthropy, alumni and friends are helping students to join the Penn State family and prepare for lifelong success; driving research, outreach and economic development that grow our shared strength and readiness for the future; and increasing the University’s impact for families, patients, and communities across the commonwealth and around the world. Learn more by visiting raise.psu.edu.