UVA Library Renovation Project

Based in Northern California, David Colin Burke is an established presence in the financial sphere and guides Selby Lane LLC, a specialty finance company in Northern California. Previously, David Colin Burke received a bachelor of science, master of arts, and juris doctor from the University of Virginia (UVA).

In early 2021, the University of Virginia Library received a major contribution to support its future in the form of a $2 million gift from philanthropist Marjorie Harrison Webb. Ms. Webb, along with her daughter, a UVA graduate, are spearheading a fundraising campaign focused on renovations that are now underway at Alderman Library.

In early 2020, the Alderman Library closed its doors so that renovation could begin. This process, which is expected to reach completion in spring 2023, will involve the creation of new open, well-lit interiors, as well as a refurbishment and renewal of historic parts of the library.

The university’s first library, known as the Rotunda, was the centerpiece of the Academical Village and broke with long-standing tradition that campuses should have religious structures as their centerpiece. The opening of the significantly larger Alderman as UVA’s main library in 1938 coincided with the university’s shift toward becoming a research institution.

World Trade Organization Selects CEIP

A San Francisco Bay Area financial executive, David Colin Burke brings more than two decades of experience to his role as the chief executive officer of Selby Lane LLC, a specialty finance company. Focused on efforts to improve the planet, David Colin Burke serves on the boards of several philanthropic organizations, including the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (CEIP).

In February 2021, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, a member of CEIP’s Board of Trustees, was selected to lead the World Trade Organization (WTO). With a history extending to post-World War II reconstruction efforts and the creation of GATT, the WTO has roots in a U.S.-led initiative to create a multilateral, rules-based trading system.

In addition to being the first African to head the WTO, Ms. Okonjo-Iweala will be the first woman in that position. She brings an extensive background in international economic relations and policy reform to the table. Among her accomplishments was facilitating a debt relief agreement for Nigeria in 2005 that decreased the oil-rich country’s debt by $30 billion. At the same time, she spearheaded initiatives that improved transparency relative to Nigeria’s oil revenue management.

Ms. Okonjo-Iweala has indicated that she will focus on better coordinating international trade, with an emphasis on developing nation priorities. Major issues at hand include addressing export restraints in ways that enable nations to keep their markets open to food and other necessary goods. Another emphasis is on the thorny issue of fisheries subsidies, which have led to overfishing and overcapacity in some marine regions. A third item on the agenda is bringing China and the United States, as the world’s largest economies, back to the negotiating table on critical trade issues. The goal is to defuse tensions that have led to renewed trade wars and protectionism.

UVA Miller Center Article Focuses

 

A financial professional with extensive experience in venture capital and private equity investment, David Colin Burke possesses degrees in finance, law, and international relations from the University of Virginia (UVA). David Colin Burke continues to remain closely associated with his alma mater and serves as a member of the board of the Miller Center of Public Affairs at UVA, a nonpartisan organization that focuses on critical issues of domestic and international policy.

A recent Miller Center article brought focus to the importance of “threading the needle” when it comes to the Biden administration’s stance toward Iran and a potential nuclear deal. The current scenario is one in which President Biden is reorienting the United States toward the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) of the Obama era. In doing so, he is shifting from hardline, sanctions-focused policies, which had a net effect of accelerating Iran’s efforts to generate fissile material to create nuclear weapons.

According to the article, there are many cross-pressures at work, from Iran’s proxy wars in Iraq and Yemen, to recent IAEA discoveries of uranium particles at facilities that were previously undisclosed. In addition, the JCPOA has many shortcomings, from verification concerns to enrichment activity timelines that are unrealistically short. The bottom line is that, in order to advance U.S. non-proliferation policy in the region, President Biden is going to need to provide some degree of sanctions relief.

UVA Miller Center Creates New Hillary

A longtime Northern California finance executive, David Colin Burke manages the specialty finance company Selby Lane, LLC, as chairman and chief executive officer. With a strong philanthropic and community focus, David Colin Burke is a sponsor of the University of Virginia (UVA) School of Law International Human Rights Clinic and a member of the board of the Miller Center.

In December 2020, the center announced the launch of an oral history project that focuses on Hillary Rodham Clinton, the former US senator, secretary of state, and first lady. This initiative aims to address a relative dearth of scholarship on Clinton's career, despite the high-level positions she held and her Democratic Party nomination in 2016 for President.

The initial project phase will focus on Clinton’s years as secretary of state and involve interviews with more than 70 people, including past staff members, leaders of nongovernmental organizations, and ministers and heads of state. In addition, Hillary Clinton has committed to sitting for a number of interviews and discussing her time in service as the chief diplomat of the United States. With the Miller Center’s director of presidential studies at the helm, the project seeks to combine “complexity and candor” in ways that will inform generations of diplomats, scholars, policymakers, and students.

Concentrates on Strengthening Democracy

Focused on identifying opportunities within global capital markets, David Colin Burke oversees Selby Lane, LLC, and maintains a strong commitment to philanthropy. In addition, David Colin Burke holds a board position with the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

An article published by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in early 2021 brought focus to a “profound” rebuilding process that will be required to shore up the bulwarks of American democracy. The issue at hand is partisan polarization that, counter-intuitively, does not have policy differences as its basis.

A majority of Americans find common ground on major issues ranging from immigration to gun legislation. What is fostering the polarization is increasing tribalism, with the Republican and Democratic parties locked into competitive ideologies that do not allow for much cooperation with the minority party within Congress or the Senate. Within such a zero-sum game, proper governance loses sway to political gains for their own sake. The resulting question is whether moderate candidates can break through this mold. 

Stanford’s Knight-Hennessy Scholars

For more than two decades, David Colin Burke has held leadership positions at various companies, such as the Investment Fund for Foundations and Stanford Management Company. At present, he leads Selby Lane, LLC, as CEO and chairman. In addition, David Colin Burke serves on the board of several academic and philanthropic organizations and has taught students in the Knight-Hennessy Scholars program at Stanford University.

The Knight-Hennessy Scholars program cultivates emerging leaders from around the world and allows them to innovate, communicate, and collaborate to address societal challenges. This program draws in talent and consists of scholars from various disciplines and backgrounds to make a large-scale positive impact on the world. These individuals display independent spirits and sharp thinking capabilities. They are also ambitious and civic-minded, so they tirelessly pursue their goal for humanity.

Scholars are only eligible for the Knight-Hennessy Scholars program if they pursue a graduate degree or a joint- or dual-graduate degree at Stanford University. While priority is given to applicants who have studied at the institution for at least two years, those who have been there for one year can successfully be part of the Knight-Hennessy Scholars cohort. The program is designed to complement scholars’ other academic work and focused on helping them expand their knowledge and develop the skills they need for leadership in the future.

 

UVA Law’s $19.87 Million Annual Giving

David Colin Burke currently serves as chairman and CEO of financial services and advisory firm Selby Lane, LLC, and managing director of Tuolumne Capital, LP. A proud “Triple Hoo,” he earned three successive degrees at the University of Virginia, culminating with his juris doctor. Today, David Colin Burke continues his long association with the school. He teaches World of Investing and International Relations classes, sponsors the International Human Rights Clinic, and sits on the board of trustees of the UVA Law School Foundation.

In addressing the public through UVA Law School’s 2019-20 annual report, Dean of UVA Law Risa L. Goluboff noted the numerous obstacles the school and its faculty and students have faced during 2020. Yet, donors contributed a total of $19.87 million to UVA Law’s annual giving campaign, the third-highest annual contribution in the school’s history.

Founded by Thomas Jefferson in 1819, UVA Law School remains the country’s second-oldest law school in continuous operation. The 2019-20 annual campaign gifts came from a variety of sources, including foundations, corporations, law firms, and more than 8,000 alumni. UVA and its law school see this dedication during a year of unprecedented challenges, turbulence, and historic change as further testament to the strength of its program and ability to continue to foster positive changes going forward.

Over the past year, UVA Law School has restructured its classrooms to accommodate online study and teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic, extended practical financial assistance to students undergoing hardships, initiated a student volunteer program designed to help its local community members cope with the complex process of filing CARES Act unemployment claims, and much more. 

Poland and Turkey’s Support for Democracy

Investment executive and entrepreneur David Colin Burke leads Selby Lane, LLC, as chairman and chief executive officer and Tuolumne Capital, LP, as managing director. Also a noted philanthropist, David Colin Burke contributes to the work of organizations dedicated to education, civic engagement, and good governance, including the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

In January 2021 the Carnegie Endowment issued a report on political conditions in two key nations experiencing rising tides of illiberal populism and struggles with authoritarianism: Poland and Turkey.

As the Carnegie analysis shows, both nations over recent decades have inspired hope in their potential not only to govern as increasingly influential democracies but to provide positive influences on emerging democracies elsewhere in the world. But each has experienced significant “slippage” in its commitment to principles of civil society, human rights, and the rule-of-law practices essential to the functioning of healthy democracies.

The report looked at how the turn toward illiberalism in both countries has affected their support for other democracies in their regions. It found that though the countries offered continued support for neighboring democratic countries, they continued to tilt toward authoritarianism themselves. Further, this democratic support is embedded in the countries’ ongoing foreign policy commitments and regional alliances, and is therefore more likely to be performative than an expression of genuine commitment to democracy.

This wasn’t always the case. Turkey, a republic since 1923, was long a beacon of democracy and influence throughout the Middle East, and was formerly on track to gain membership in the European Union. Meanwhile, Poland emerged from the democratic revolutions of 1989 with a government and a population scarred by the repressions of the Soviet system, and has often lent substantial support to democratic movements in Central and Eastern Europe, most recently in Ukraine and Belarus.

Miller Center Looks at Barack Obama's Life Before Becoming President

An Atherton, California-based financial executive with extensive experience in venture capital, private equity investing, and entrepreneurship, David Colin Burke is the chairman and CEO of Selby Lane, LLC. Having earned a master's degree in international relations as well as a juris doctor from the University of Virginia (UVA), David Colin Burke maintains affiliation to the university through support of the UVA Miller Center of Presidential Studies.

The UVA Miller Center is a nonpartisan academic organization that focuses on presidential scholarships and political history. It has produced several books on presidents and featured online content on topics such as Watergate, the Vietnam War, and Barack Obama's life before becoming the 44th president of the US.

Obama's life from his youth up until 2004 is covered in the latter essay, which was edited by Rhodes College professor Michael Nelson. Born in Hawaii, Obama later lived for four years with his mother and stepfather in Indonesia. He stated that experiencing such diverse cultures at an early age was a benefit to his life and career in politics.

The essay also touches on Obama's education, family life, and relationship with religion. He was, as he once wrote, "not raised in a religious household," but was baptized and became a Christian in 1988 at Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago. The essay concludes with Obama's rise as a prominent figure in federal politics with his election to the US Senate in 2004. It also touches on his memorable speech that year at the Democratic National Convention.