Dan Gilbert and his wife Jennifer, who both graduated from Michigan State University, have made a substantial gift to the university from their family foundation to support basketball, scholarships for Detroiters, and research for people with disabilities.
The $15 million donation is one of the largest in MSU’s Empower Extraordinary campaign. Since 2011, the campaing has raised more than $1.26 billion since 2011 to support global problem-solving research, endowed faculty positions, enhanced facilities and student opportunities.
“Michigan State has played a large role in both of our lives and we are honored to support the university. Coach Izzo and Mark Hollis have built Spartan basketball into one of the nation’s premier programs,” said Dan Gilbert in a statement. “Additionally, it is important that students of all backgrounds, including young Detroiters, realize their maximum potential and are exposed to the opportunities that higher education provides.”
Let’s break it down:
The Breslin Center: The Gilberts’ gift will support a new addition and renovation of the Breslin Center at MSU. The Breslin Center addition involves construction of a new box office, the Tom Izzo Hall of History and, for the student-athletes and coaches of the men’s and women’s basketball teams, the addition of the Draymond Green strength and conditioning center, a hydration station, lounges for players and recruits, and an alumni locker room. The total project will run $20 million, according to the school.
The Detroit Scholars Program (DSP): The DSP provides academic support and scholarships for Detroit-based students attending MSU, including those who are the first in their families to attend college or who have come from academically disadvantaged backgrounds.
Michigan State enrolled 109 Detroit Promise Scholars in the 2016-17 academic year, the inaugural year for the program. The Gilberts’ gift will provide funding to enhance counseling and support services to ensure a high level of retention and improve the chances of success for these students from Detroit.
Resource Center for Persons with Disabilities: The RCPD works with nearly 2,000 students each year at MSU to find solutions to the challenges that people with disabilities face in higher education, making the campus accessible to those who are visually impaired or deaf, have mobility challenges, learning disabilities, chronic health or mental health conditions or are on the autism spectrum. Gilbert’s son has Neurofibromatosis, a genetic disorder that causes tumors to form on nerve tissue.
In case you didn’t know, Dan Gilbert is a graduate of the College of Communication Arts and Sciences and his wife Jennifer graduated from the former MSU College of Human Ecology in 1990 with a bachelor’s degree in interior design.