Barnard College is pleased to announce the newly named Denise LeFrak Foundation Alcohol and Substance Awareness Program (ASAP). With new funding, generously gifted from the Denise LeFrak Foundation, the program will support students who are currently in recovery, questioning their alcohol and/or drug use, in a relationship (family member, friend, or partner) with someone using alcohol or drugs, or just seeking information.
“I can safely say there’s not a person whose life has not been affected by some form of addiction. Addiction isn’t just about drugs and alcohol — it’s about what they do to your life. Your relationships, your family, your career, your everything,” said LeFrak. “This gift will help create a program that will empower people to take charge of their lives: to regain their dignity, independence and health and create a successful life of purpose and accomplishment.”
The new gift will also name a room in the Francine A. LeFrak Foundation Center for Well-Being that will serve as a programming hub for ASAP’s individual and group counseling, along with events and outreach in partnership with departments across the College’s campus. An endowed Denise LeFrak Foundation Wellness Fund will also support other wellness-related programming within the named space. Above all, the program provides a safe space and opportunities for students to confidentially ask questions and access guidance.
“This new gift is an exciting step in our mission to create an accessible, centralized hub on campus that addresses all aspects of student well-being,” said President Sian Leah Beilock. “The expansion of ASAP’s campus-wide reach and impact will ensure that all students with questions about their well-being will know where to go on campus to seek information and advice.”
“ASAP is so excited to be given such a generous gift by Denise LeFrak,” added director of the Rosemary Furman Counseling Center Mary Commerford. “We hope to be able to expand our reach on campus, to enhance our commitment to education, prevention, and support for our students. This gift will provide the chance for ASAP to reach even more members of our community, creating programming and spaces designed to help our students learn and thrive. We are incredibly grateful.”
Denise LeFrak, a prominent figure in real estate and the daughter of Barnard alumna and late member of the Barnard Board of Trustees Ethel Stone LeFrak ’41 and Samuel J. LeFrak, is dedicated to promoting and supporting women-based initiatives and businesses. She has served on various committees and boards, including the New York Philharmonic, the Development Committee of ABT Lincoln Center, the Women’s Bank Advisory Board, the Board of the Cancer Research and Treatment Fund, the Guggenheim Museum, the Chairman’s Council of the Metropolitan Museum, and the Harvard Kennedy School Women’s Leadership Board.
“This partnership means so much because it will carry on my mother’s legacy,” said LeFrak. “Her main mission, besides raising her family, was to help people [who are] less fortunate. My daughters and I are so proud to be part of the Barnard family and the outstanding work they do.”
Helping others is at the heart of LeFrak’s mission with ASAP. “It is very important to destigmatize the idea of needing help, and this program will be welcoming and will offer alternative activities and build a sense of community so that no one, dealing with addiction, feels alone,” LeFrak said. “This should be seen as a place of hope.”
