Former Sen. Kyrsten Sinema donated the majority of her now-defunct campaign funds to Arizona State University, her alma mater and the site of her new innovation center.
Sinema donated $3 million to the university, according to recent campaign finance filings. Earlier this month, she announced a new collaboration with ASU: an initiative called the Spark Center for Innovation in Learning.
Sinema, a Democrat-turned-independent, was a professor at ASU for over 20 years. She said she intends for the university to assist neurodiverse children, including those with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, autism, and dyslexia, among other learning differences. The center will also launch a “Global AI Competition to invite tech companies, students, researchers, faculty and others to help design AI-powered solutions that support neurodiverse learners at all stages of life,” according to a release from the university.
“Looking forward to advancing AI solutions for neurodivergent learners, and I’m so excited to partner with @OpenAI in this work,” Sinema wrote on social media.
After announcing she would not seek a second term in the Senate, Sinema, with her campaign still flush with cash, hosted undisclosed events and spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on travel domestically and abroad.
Between Oct. 1 and Dec. 31, 2024, her campaign spent at least $26,000 on overseas expenses, most of which were for a trip to a five-star hotel in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Her campaign spent more than $650,000 between July 1 and Sept. 30, including $216,000 on travel.
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After leaving office, Sinema took a job in the private sector, joining crypto exchange Coinbase’s Global Advisory Council and becoming an adviser at the law firm Hogan Lovells.
Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) won Sinema’s Senate seat in the 2024 election.
