The Georgia Institute of Technology is establishing the Ivan Allen Prize Jr. for Social Courage in recognition of the late Ivan Allen Jr., former mayor of Atlanta for whom the Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts is named.

The international prize will honor individuals whose life and work embody the moral courage personified by former Mayor Allen. Funded in perpetuity by a grant from the Wibur and Hilda Glenn Family Foundation, the prize carries with it a $100,000 stipend and will be awarded for the first time in 2011.

"Mayor Allen was well known to those who lived in the city and the region during the civil rights struggles of the 1950s and 1960s," said Georgia Tech President G.P. "Bud" Peterson. "The Ivan Allen Jr. Prize for Social Courage will recognize those who represent the values of the former Atlanta mayor and who lead with integrity, compassion and courage."

Allen was largely responsible for building Atlanta's reputation as an international city through strong support for the business community, development of vibrant arts programs and the recruitment of professional sports teams. For all this to be possible, he first had to address the issue of racial segregation and became a pivotal leader influencing the passage of America's civil rights bill.

The new prize replaces the Ivan Allen Jr. Prize for Progress and Service, which was awarded from 2001-2010. Georgia-affiliated recipients of that prize include former President Jimmy Carter, former U.S. Senator Sam Nunn, civil rights activist Jesse Hill Jr., and Georgia Cancer Coalition CEO William J. Todd.

In addition to Georgia Tech academic leaders, the nominating committee will be chaired by the Honorable James T. Laney, former ambassador to South Korea and former president of Emory University, and include Charles H. "Pete" McTier, retired president of the Robert W. Woodruff Foundation; Inman Allen, Chairman and CEO, Ivan Allen Industries, Susan Eisenhower, chairman emeritus, the Eisenhower Institute; Helene D. Gayle, PhD, CEO, CARE USA; and Former U.S. Senator Sam Nunn, director, Nunn Institute for Non-Proliferation of Nuclear, Chemical and Biological Weapons.