\n<\/p>\n
Cornell University has received a pledge of $371.5\u00a0million from alumnus and software entrepreneur David Duffield, marking the largest single gift in the institution\u2019s history. <\/p>\n
Combined with previous gifts from Duffield\u2014which now total $550\u00a0million\u2014the new contribution will establish the Cornell David A. Duffield College of Engineering. Cornell is already home to Duffield Hall, which was completed in 2004 and houses research and teaching facilities for nanoscale science and engineering. Last year Duffield pledged $100\u00a0million\u2014at the time, the largest gift in Cornell\u2019s history\u2014to update and expand the eponymous building.<\/p>\n
The new pledge will be used primarily for endowment funds, including $250\u00a0million for the Duffield Legacy Fund, which will support the university\u2019s ongoing strategic pursuits, and $50\u00a0million to advance key priorities related to educational excellence. The remainder will create the Duffield Launch Fund, which will support updating the college\u2019s physical infrastructure, strengthening research facilities, supporting teaching and learning, and advancing research excellence. <\/p>\n
\u201cI welcome the opportunity to help advance technological research, innovation and leadership at Cornell,\u201d Duffield said in news release. \u201cI\u2019ve worked closely with many Cornellians over the years, and they consistently demonstrate exceptional leadership, creativity and problem-solving abilities. It\u2019s a privilege to give back to my alma mater in ways that strengthen the university\u2019s commitment to excellence.\u201d<\/p>\n
Duffield has credited his Cornell professors for setting him on the path to success. He went on to become the founding CEO of two companies\u2014 PeopleSoft and Workday\u2014that were each valued at $1 billion or more at their initial public offerings.<\/p>\n
\u201cMany Cornell graduates have gone on to make incredible contributions to society through their innovations,\u201d Cornell president Michael I. Kotlikoff said in a statement. \u201cAmong this esteemed group, Dave Duffield stands out for his transformational accomplishments and his determination to do the greatest good. We are tremendously grateful for Dave\u2019s generous previous support of the College of Engineering and the Veterinary College. And Dave\u2019s new gift and naming of the College of Engineering will impact Cornellians for generations and is an extraordinary tribute to the college and to Cornell.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Cornell University has received a pledge of $371.5\u00a0million from alumnus and software entrepreneur David Duffield, marking the largest single gift in the institution\u2019s history. Combined with previous gifts from Duffield\u2014which now total $550\u00a0million\u2014the new contribution will establish the Cornell David A. Duffield College of Engineering. Cornell is already home to Duffield Hall, which was completed<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":42568,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[57],"tags":[22413,22414,18799,12646,2225,10540],"class_list":{"0":"post-42567","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-education","8":"tag-371-5m","9":"tag-alumnus","10":"tag-cornell","11":"tag-entrepreneur","12":"tag-pledge","13":"tag-receives"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42567","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=42567"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42567\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/42568"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=42567"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=42567"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=42567"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}