CORNELL NOW
Cornell Now--2015
Dyan and John '74 Smith. Photo: Provided.
Giving it away to keep it in the family
John Smith '74 and his wife, Dyan (pictured above), owners of CRST International – one of the 10 largest truckload concerns in America – made a $10 million gift in December to the Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management to found the John and Dyan Smith Family Business Initiative.
Housed in Johnson's Entrepreneurship and Innovation Institute, the initiative will fund the John and Dyan Smith Professor of Management and Family Business, the Smith Family Clinical Professor of Management, and the Smith Family Research, Program and Faculty Support Fund.
"With a focus on family businesses at Johnson," John Smith said, "good research will be conducted, educational seminars will address the unique needs of family businesses, and prospective students will be drawn to Johnson because of the family business expertise on campus."
The Smiths' son, Ian, MBA '15, is among many students from family businesses to study at Johnson over the past several decades – a trend that Soumitra Dutta, dean of Johnson, expects to continue.
Wesley Sine, faculty director of Johnson's Entrepreneurship and Innovation Institute, is developing the initiative's first two programs: a course focusing on family businesses, and the Smith Family Distinguished Family Business Lecture Series, which will bring executives from successful family businesses to campus.
– Shannon Dortch
$75M creates Meyer Cancer Center at Weill Cornell
From left: Glimcher, Sandra and Edward Meyer, Cantley and Anthony Meyer. Photo: Roger Tully. See larger image
Weill Cornell Medical College has received a $75 million gift from Sandra and Edward Meyer '48 and the Sandra and Edward Meyer Foundation. The gift will name and provide funding for the Sandra and Edward Meyer Cancer Center at Weill Cornell Medical College, led by pre-eminent cancer researcher Dr. Lewis Cantley. The center, which uses precision medicine and other biomedical approaches, spurs and translates research breakthroughs into advanced therapies for patients.
In honor of the Meyer family's gift, Weill Cornell will also name its building at 1300 York Ave. the Sandra and Edward Meyer Research and Education Building.
"Sandy, our children, Meg and Tony, and I gave careful consideration to which New York institution was best poised to produce breakthroughs in cancer, and Weill Cornell was the obvious choice due to its exceptional roster of translational, cutting-edge scientists and commitment to building its oncology research enterprise," Edward Meyer said.
"Cancer is a disease that touches everyone's lives," said Dr. Laurie H. Glimcher, the Stephen and Suzanne Weiss Dean of Weill Cornell Medical College. "With Ed and Sandy's generous support, we will be able to rapidly accelerate our pursuit of groundbreaking treatments and therapies for our patients." The gift will also support faculty and researcher hiring.
Pictured above, from left: Glimcher, Sandra and Edward Meyer, Cantley and Anthony Meyer.
– Alyssa Sunkin
$5 million gift funds Johnson chair at Cornell Tech
Rob Dyson, MBA '74. Photo: Provided. See larger image
A $5 million gift from the Dyson Foundation of Millbrook, N.Y., will support the founding faculty chair for a new MBA program at Cornell Tech, offered by the Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management. The gift was made on the recommendation of Rob Dyson, MBA '74 (pictured at left), Cornell trustee emeritus and chairman and CEO of the Dyson-Kissner-Moran Corp.
"The foundation's gift comes at a key moment, as we strive to build our faculty presence in New York City," said Soumitra Dutta, dean of Johnson. "This chaired professorship will allow us to attract top-quality faculty to our programs at Cornell Tech and to help ensure their success."
Soumitra Dutta, dean of Johnson. See larger image
In May, Johnson will welcome the inaugural class of its one-year MBA program at Cornell Tech, in which students will gain an advanced business education through the lens of the tech industry. The program begins on the Ithaca campus before continuing in New York City.
Dyson was inspired to get behind Cornell Tech and Johnson's presence there by the power of Cornell, Johnson and the city itself.
"Cornell Tech is a logical outreach for a great university like Cornell and its world-class business school. It's a statement of commitment that Johnson is creating a presence in the most important metropolitan area for business in the U.S. and, arguably, the world," said Dyson, co-chair of the Johnson NYC Steering Committee.
Doug Stayman, associate dean for MBA programs at Johnson. See larger image
Johnson is conducting searches for several faculty positions for the New York City-based MBA program.
"Achieving the results we seek for our students requires uniquely qualified faculty members who are steeped in the research and skills needed to create business leaders for the digital economy," said Doug Stayman, associate dean for MBA programs. "… having a chaired professorship to offer a top candidate is a strong draw."
Like Stayman, Dyson believes the professorship at Cornell Tech demands a particularly energetic and distinctive faculty member. He is inspired by the work of Brain Wansink, the John S. Dyson Professor of Marketing at Cornell's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and an adjunct professor at Johnson.
"If you take what Brian has done for his students and Cornell, that is the impact I want from the chaired position at Cornell Tech," Dyson said. "A real scholar, a real teacher, a real thinker – and keen as hell."
– Shannon Dortch
Infographic: Alumni giving by class year. Graphic by Lorraine Heasley/University Communications.