{"id":112487,"date":"2026-11-02T16:40:17","date_gmt":"2026-11-02T21:40:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/?p=112487"},"modified":"2026-11-02T16:47:46","modified_gmt":"2026-11-02T21:47:46","slug":"legacy-gift-helps-students-unearth-passion-for-archaeology","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/2026\/11\/legacy-gift-helps-students-unearth-passion-for-archaeology\/","title":{"rendered":"Legacy gift helps students unearth passion for archaeology"},"content":{"rendered":"

As they watched Brock University students unearth secrets of the ancient world at a dig site in Italy, Jane and Patrick Kierans could feel the lasting impact of their dear friend John Corrigan and the gift made in his memory.<\/p>\n

An avid traveller and archaeology enthusiast whose life was defined by curiosity, adventure and a love of learning, Corrigan spent years exploring the world and sharing his stories with others.<\/p>\n

Now, with the help of the Kierans, his legacy is supporting Brock Classics and Archaeology<\/a> students on their own academic adventures, fuelling their passion for the past as they discover its connection to the present.<\/p>\n

In late 2024, the Kierans inherited a rich collection of archival materials belonging to Corrigan \u2014 and immediately knew it could have a new home at Brock University.<\/p>\n

They had experienced Brock\u2019s commitment to students and the study of the ancient world during the University\u2019s annual Ontario Student Classics Conference, which Jane had attended with their daughters years ago.<\/p>\n

Learning more about Brock\u2019s Classics and Archaeology offerings only further piqued their interest.<\/p>\n

“We thought John would have absolutely loved this program and what these students are doing,” Jane said.<\/p>\n

To honour their friend, the couple established the Kierans Corrigan Legacy Fund this fall, helping Brock Classics and Archaeology students experience history first-hand through learning opportunities such as study tours and archaeological fieldwork.<\/p>\n

Through an initial commitment of $50,000 over five years, along with a planned gift that will eventually endow the fund, they hope future students will have access to the kinds of transformative experiences that shaped Corrigan’s life and worldview.<\/p>\n

\"Jane<\/a>

Jane Kierans (left) unearthed a bone artifact alongside Brock University team member Sabrina Perreault during a visit to an Italian archeological dig site where students conducted fieldwork this summer.<\/p><\/div>\n

The fund has already helped support 10 students participating in the Brock\u2019s Classics and Archaeology Field School Practica in Italy and Greece this summer, enabling them to gain immersive experiences at historic and archaeological sites.<\/p>\n

While travelling through Europe this summer, the Kierans visited Associate Professor of Classics and Archaeology Carrie Murray and students at the excavation site. There, they learned about ongoing research projects, explored local museums with the Brock team and gained insight into the day-to-day realities of archaeological fieldwork. Jane even had the unique experience of unearthing a small bone at the dig site.<\/p>\n

Most importantly, they witnessed how fieldwork is supporting students\u2019 education and future aspirations, bringing classroom lessons to life one thrilling archaeological discovery at a time.<\/p>\n

Seeing the effect of experiential learning first-hand gave Jane and Patrick new meaning to their philanthropy.<\/p>\n

“The experience made the impact tangible and real,” said Patrick. “You can read about student success, but standing at the excavation site and hearing directly from students about what they’re learning is something entirely different.”<\/p>\n

The Kierans\u2019 journey was a fitting tribute to the memory of their adventurous friend whose gift led them to an active archaeological dig in the Tuscan countryside, surrounded by students engaging directly with the ancient world.<\/p>\n

“Seeing students and their passion reinforced exactly why we created the fund,” Patrick said. “We hope it gives future generations the opportunity to travel, learn and experience the excitement of discovery for themselves while keeping John’s memory alive through experiences that would have meant so much to him.”<\/p>\n

Jane added that feeling the enthusiasm and passion of the students and seeing their love for discovery was \u201cjust so meaningful.”<\/p>\n

“We are the ones who really got to benefit from the experience.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As they watched Brock University students unearth secrets of the ancient world at a dig site in Italy, Jane and Patrick Kierans could feel the lasting impact of their dear friend John Corrigan and the gift made in his memory.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":101,"featured_media":112491,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[7484,13793,3319,37,14105,1],"tags":[1570,11446,1153,15316,15313,15314,15315],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/112487"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/101"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=112487"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/112487\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":112494,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/112487\/revisions\/112494"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/112491"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=112487"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=112487"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=112487"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}