Michigan Gets Another $100 Million From Ross

“Stephen Ross’ vision has always been about the ability of facilities to transform the human experience,” said U-M President Mary Sue Coleman in a statement. “He understands the power of well-conceived spaces, and his generosity will benefit generations of Michigan students, faculty and coaches. This historic gift is not only an investment in the University of Michigan, but also in our state. Steve Ross believes deeply in our collective future as national and global leaders.”

Earlier this year, Ross committed to give half or more of his wealth to charity and signed the Giving Pledge, a long-term, global initiative created by Warren Buffett and Bill and Melinda Gates that aims to inspire deeper engagement in philanthropy and increase charitable giving globally. He said the latest gift to Michigan was made because the university, which granted him a B.A. degree in accounting in 1962, has had a big impact on his life.

“The University of Michigan had a profound impact on my life and I have received enormous satisfaction from being able to give back to the institution that played such a critical role in my success,” he said in a statement announcing the gift. “I am thrilled to be able to make such an impactful contribution and to not only help write the next chapter for the University, but also offer much-needed scholarships to ensure we continue to attract the best and the brightest students and provide them with the financial resources they need. I am confident that the initiatives we undertake will further transform the business school and athletic facilities and ensure the University Michigan continues to offer a world-class institution for our future leaders. I could not be more proud.”

Ross earned a law degree from Wayne State University and a master of law degree in taxation from New York University. He began his career as a tax attorney at Coopers & Lybrand in Detroit. He serves on the executive committee and is a trustee of Lincoln Center, is a trustee of New York Presbyterian Hospital and the Guggenheim Foundation and a director of the World Resources Institute and the Jackie Robinson Foundation.

Largest Gifts To Business Schools

Gift	School	Year	Donors
$300 million	Chicago (Booth)	2008	David Booth
$200 million	Michigan (Ross)	2004 & 2013	Stephen M. Ross
$150 million	Stanford	2011	Robert & Dorothy King
$105 million	Stanford	2006	Philip H. Knight
$100 million	Columbia	2010	Henry Kravis
$100 million	Columbia	2013	Ronald Perelman
$85 million	Wisconsin	2007	Alumni Partnership*
$80 million	Cornell (Johnson)	2010	David & Patricia Atkinson
$60 million	Virginia (Darden)	1999	Frank Batten Sr.
$60 million	Northeastern	2012	Richard D’Amore,Alan McKim
$60 million	Thunderbird	2004	Samuel & Rita Garvin
$50 million	Harvard	2010	Ratan Tata
$50 million	Georgia Tech	2012	Ernest Scheller Jr.
$50 million	Arizona State (Carey)	2003	William Polk Carey
$50 million	Texas (McCombs)	2000	Red McCombs
$50 million	Arkansas (Walton)	1996	The Walton Family
$50 million	Yale	2010	Ned Evans
$45 million	Drexel (LeBow)	2010	Bennett LeBow
$40 million	Harvard	2012	James Chao
$40 million	Loyola (Quinlan)	2012	Michael Quinlan
$40 million	North Carolina State (Poole)	2010	Lonnie Poole
$40 million	Houston (Bauer)	2000	Charles T. Bauer
$40 million	Pennsylvania (Wharton)	1998	Jon M. Huntsman
$35 million	Notre Dame (Mendoza)	2000	Thomas & Kathy Mendoza
$35 million	USC (Marshall)	1997	Gordon Marshall