UR alumnus and Shinsei Bank CEO Brian Prince is donating up to $2 million to the university. The university believes this is the largest-ever gift it has received from a single donor under 40 years old.
Prince, 38, who came to UR after receiving a fluke scholarship, graduated from both the College and the William E. Simon School of Graduate Business Administration.
The gift consists of an initial donation of $1 million with the promise of a matching gift in the future.
The money will be channelled into the University’s Alumnni Scholarship Fund and Athletic Department, as these are what brought him to the school, and also to the Simon School and The Jeremy Glick Fund. Glick, a UR alumnus, is credited as a September 11 hero.
“There is no way to measure what the University of Rochester and the Simon Business School have meant to me,” Prince said in his remarks at a ceremony.
University President Thomas Jackson and Tokyo-based Shinsei Bank chairman Masamoto Yashiro also attended the ceremony.
“Brian Prince exemplifies the entrepreneurial spirit and global outlook that we try and cultivate in our students,” Jackson said.
Prince credits the opportunity the university gave him in the form of a scholarship as the seminal life-changing event that led him ultimately to Tokyo. “I never would have imagined living in Tokyo, which is about as far from Rochester as you can get,” he said.
Raised in nearby Gates, Prince is the first member of his family to attend a university. He graduated in 1986 and went on to earn an MBA from the Simon School.
Prince’s mission is to promote “open societies,” a philosophy that emphasizes freedom and social justice. He advocates human rights, the advancement and respect of minorities, divided power, and promotes a free market economy.
Despite his success, Prince remains true to his roots, and will not forget the chance the university gave him.
“I believe that a person is the sum of their experiences and the people who surround him,” he said. “I could not be more blessed.”
C-SPAN broadcasts Meliora Weekend events
As anticipated, C-SPAN, the public affairs cable network, broadcast two Meliora Weekend presentations Saturday. As part of the network’s “American Perspectives” series, C-SPAN televised the Stanton/Anthony conversation “How Women Lead” and “Leadership in the Black Community,” a presentation by Earl Graves. Graves is the founder and publisher of Black Enterprise Magazine.
According to Secretary of the College Dana Rittenhouse, Graves’ address launched UR’s new David T. Kearns Center for Leadership and Diversity in Science and Engineering. “The center will promote the entry of students of color into advanced degree programs in science and engineering,” she wrote in a release.
The Stanton/Anthony conversation featured Former Secretary of the Department of Education, the Honorable Madeleine M. Kunin and former White House communications director Ann F. Lewis, among others. The presentation was “a compelling and timely discussion about how women succeed or fail as leaders in U.S. politics, government and business,” Rittenhouse wrote.
The university was enthusiastic about the national exposure.
“The University of Rochester was honored to host these compelling programs,” she said.
Reporting by Dan Bobkoff.
