Harls Link Legacy with College

Neil and Darlene Harl

Neil Harl is an iconic figure at Iowa State University.

For the past 58 years, the Harl name has been a fixture on campus, including more than 40 years as a faculty member in the department of economics before retiring in 2004.

Now the Harl legacy will be forever linked to Iowa State and the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences through a $1.5 million pledge from Dr. Neil and Darlene Harl toward renovation of Curtiss Hall, the building housing the college’s main offices.

"We are approaching the renovation of Curtiss Hall as an opportunity to maintain and improve an iconic symbol of the college and the university," said Wendy Wintersteen, Iowa State’s Endowed Dean of Agriculture and Life Sciences. "We expect to present a building to the outside world, and to our colleagues on campus, that shows the pride we feel in agriculture, the cutting-edge nature of the sciences of agriculture, and the warm, caring approach to students that has been the hallmark of the college since its birth."

The Harls’ pledge will create the Harl Commons, a renovated space located on the ground floor of Curtiss Hall. This student-centered area will include a café/deli and four small meeting rooms to encourage teamwork and to improve communication. Adjacent to this area will be a student services "mall" which will provide one-stop shopping for students, including offices for career services, academic advising, study abroad, agricultural entrepreneurship, multicultural programs and a welcome center.

"As students, and later in our faculty service, we came to believe firmly that Iowa State is one of the finest institutions in the country in helping students build their educational and personal platforms for life," the Harls said. "We are pleased and honored to be identified with Iowa State in this manner."

"We’re excited that an iconic person in the college’s history such as Dr. Neil Harl has linked his legacy with that of the college," Wintersteen said.

Neil Harl is a Charles F. Curtiss Distinguished Professor in Agriculture and Life Sciences and emeritus professor of economics at Iowa State. A member of the Iowa State Bar Association, he is an internationally recognized expert in farm finance, taxation, estate planning, business planning, and agricultural law.

He is the founder of and served as director of the Center for International Agricultural Finance from 1990 until his retirement in December 2004. The center conducted 79 three-to-seven week schools both in the U.S. and abroad, and graduated more than 1,600 from the schools, which focused on banking, credit, finance, and risk management for individuals from countries transitioning to a market economy. He is credited with helping to lay the foundation for economic development in such countries, particularly in Eastern Europe.

Harl has been a distinguished professor since 1976. He received a bachelor of science degree (1955) and a doctorate in economics from Iowa State. His law degree was awarded from the University of Iowa in 1961.

Darlene Harl received her bachelor of science degree from Iowa State in 1981.

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