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About the Program

Duke Athletics and Stanford Athletics originally launched the Rubenstein-Bing Student-Athlete Civic Engagement Program (ACE) in Spring 2015 to provide student-athletes with opportunities for immersive international summer experiences. Recognizing the challenge for student-athletes to fully participate in many of the offered campus programs, Duke and Stanford met this need together for eight years by offering student-athletes greater access to civic engagement and service opportunities through ACE. For summer 2024, Stanford is pausing their involvement in the program, and ACE will run as a Duke-only program for student-athletes under the name of the Rubenstein Student-Athlete Civic Engagement Program.

Learn more about ACE by visiting the program FAQ page.

How ACE Began

In February 2014, Stanford University hosted the Duke Board of Trustees in Palo Alto, CA, to provide an opportunity for the two schools which share many similarities — both are major research universities with large medical centers and strong athletic programs — to learn from each other and find new ways to collaborate. As a result of the meeting, the Duke and Stanford Athletic Departments were challenged to think about ways to work together. A shared challenge was quickly identified by both athletic departments — namely that for student-athletes, participating in experiential, off-campus programs such as study abroad and immersive civic engagement programs are often difficult due to students’ athletic schedules and training requirements.

The Rubenstein-Bing Student-Athlete Civic Engagement Program (ACE) was formally announced in Spring 2015. Duke Athletics also committed that a dollar of every ticket sold to regular-season home sporting events goes toward funding the program and ensuring its long-term sustainability.

Known for building a nationally recognized civic engagement program at Duke, DukeEngage was asked to be a collaborative partner along with the Haas Center for Public Service at Stanford to develop and support the initial launch of the ACE program. With continued support from the ACE Advisory Board and stakeholders across both campuses, ACE launched the first team of Duke-Stanford ACE student-athletes in Summer 2016 and for eight summers Duke and Stanford students co-participated in the program. In Fall 2023, Stanford decided to pause its involvement in the program. ACE continues on as a Duke-only program.

Learn more about ACE history by visiting the ACE milestones page.

How ACE is Funded

The Rubenstein Student-Athlete Civic Engagement Program (ACE) launched in early 2015 thanks to the generous support and vision of David Rubenstein.

A Baltimore native, 1970 graduate of Duke and the former chair of the university’s Board of Trustees, David Rubenstein is co-founder and managing director of The Carlyle Group, a global alternative asset manager. He is also an active civic leader and serves on numerous boards, including those of the Smithsonian Institution, Johns Hopkins University, the University of Chicago, the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, the Kennedy Center, and the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.

Thanks to the gifts of David Rubenstein and Duke Athletics Ticket sale revenue, the program has expanded the global and civic opportunities available to D-I student-athletes at Duke University.