Schools and Buildings

The most common donors of large gifts for facility development are alumni of business schools, particularly those who have remained actively involved in the life and development of their schools. Another common source of funding is local industry, which benefits from the human capital of the business schools’ graduates.

Here are a few examples:

California State University at Fullerton received a naming gift for the Steven G. Mihaylo College of Business and Economics which included 4.5 million USD toward a new 87.5 million USD business building. The hall opened in the fall of 2008. Mihaylo is an alumnus of the business school.

Miami University’s Farmer School of Business received a 25 million USD gift covering the majority of the funding needed for construction of a new business school building, Farmer Hall, from the Farmer Family Foundation.

University of Florida’s Warrington College of Business Administration received a 30 million USD gift from an alumnus of the school’s first MBA program, William R. Hough. The funds established the Hough Graduate School of Business and included a leading gift for construction of the more than 23 million USD William R. Hough Hall.

University of Nebraska–Omaha received a substantial lead and complementary gift from Carl and Joyce Mammell for the construction of its new 31 million USD state-of-the-art green facility, Mammel Hall, to support the College of Business Administration.

University of New Hampshire’s Whittemore School of Business and Economics received the largest single donation in its history from a business school alumni to cover half of the cost of its new Peter T. Paul College building. Paul’s gift of 25 million USD came with a challenge to other alumni, friends, and members of the business community to raise the remaining half of the funds needed.

University of Washington’s Foster School of Business received an 18 million USD naming gift for a new building from PACCAR and the Pigott family. The naming gift was unique in that the new PACCAR Hall carries the name of a company, rather than an individual.

Classroom and Other Non-Building-Level Gifts

Opportunities for donors to name classrooms or other areas of the school provide additional methods for raising the necessary private capital for construction or renovation. Such opportunities can be a way for alumni or local stakeholders to leave their mark on the school, even if they do not have the means to donate at a level corresponding to the naming of a full building. These methods also can be an effective way to keep alumni engaged with the school and current students.

Spaces within business schools that have been known to carry donor names include:

• Classrooms
• Labs/Specialized Learning Spaces (Computer Lab, Financial Markets Lab)
• Meeting Rooms
• Public Spaces (Atriums, Halls, and Lounges)

Features within business schools that have been known to carry donor names include:

• Bricks
• Tiles
• Trees
• Stock Tickers
• Classroom seats

University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management received a 50 million USD gift from the Province of Ontario toward a new building to house the school’s Centre for Jurisdictional Advantage and Prosperity and expanded facilities for the school’s MBA and Ph.D. programs. A major focus of research for the school is the enhancement of Ontario’s and Canada’s global competitiveness.