New business school receives donation

By Michael Moeschler

The future of Santa Clara's new business school continues to look promising. Last week, Cadence Design Systems Inc. donated $1.1 million to help build the state of the art business center.

With the donation, the new Leavey School of Business has reached nearly half of the proposed $40 million budget.

"This support from a leading Silicon Valley innovator sustains the momentum for our new building," said business school Dean Barry Z. Posner in a press release. "With this gift, we are already close to the halfway point in our $40 million fund-raising campaign."

According to Posner, the university has raised $19.4 million towards the $40 million goal, with more than $2.7 million received in the last six months.

The new business school is just part of an array of new buildings, scholarships and programs that are included in the university's campaign to raise $350 million. The business school's cafeteria will be named "Cadence Café."

"The Leavey School of Business plays a critical role in this community, providing a first-rate education to future business leaders here and throughout the world," said Ray Bingham, CEO and president of Cadence. "I'm hopeful the new school and Cadence Café will serve as a place where these great minds come to meet and chart their paths to meaningful and fulfilling careers."

Bingham, who also sits on the Leavey School of Business Advisory Board, believes that despite the tough economy, the investment in the school is necessary for both the success of Cadence and the community.

The proposed three-story, 82,000 square foot business school will sit at the northeast corner of the Santa Clara campus. The building will consolidate both business school classes and offices into one area. The new school will also be home to MBA classrooms and conference rooms.

It also will be the new home for the university's Center for Science, Technology and Society and the business school's Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Retail Management Institute and Executive Development Center.