On Thursday, March 17 President Dr. Lori S. White announced $40 million in donations for DePauw’s incoming School of Business and Leadership, projected to open in the fall of 2023.
"These gifts will enable us to hire some new faculty, using the gifts that we have just received so that it's not shifting current resources from one area to another,” President White said. “It's an opportunity for us to bring new resources to the table in order for us to realize the vision of the School of Business Leadership initially."
$20 million was donated by Tim and Sharon Ubben ‘58 in support of the new business school and another $20 million was from a previous donation made in 2018 by Steve and Karen Sanger ‘68 to establish the Sanger Leadership Initiative which will be a part of the business school, according to Mary Dieter, director of media relations at DePauw.
The Sangers made their gift "in support of what I call a leadership lab, or an opportunity. They're really interested in supporting leadership development that occurs in the co-curricular experience,” President White said.
The Sanger Leadership Initiative, first implemented in 2018, “ Will continue to support curricular and co-curricular activities as it has been in recent years that elevates the practice and application for all DePauw students,” Anne Cunningham, vice president of development and alumni engagement, said.
Some aspects of this initiative include winter term courses such as ‘Leading in Business: Bringing out the Best in People’ with Professor Holbrook Hankison, and students have also traveled to other schools such as the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business and Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business, according to Cunningham.
“I cannot express enough of my gratitude for what these gifts mean for the future of our students and DePauw; the generosity of Sharon and Tim, who as you know passed away last year, and Steve and Karen -- and their love of DePauw -- knows no bounds,” President White said in an email to students on March 17.