"When someone shows what you can do with knowledge and how you can help people with it, then it becomes alive and exciting," says Cindy R. Golub, W'76, financial planner and former Vice President of Goldman Sachs. Contributing resources for faculty development, Cindy says, continues to connect her with the intellectual vitality of the School. "New ideas are being generated that can positively impact the world. By helping Wharton develop young thought leaders, I feel like I'm part of that process and contributing to the good that's being done by the University."

A generous endowment established by Cindy and her husband, Bennett W. Golub, will deliver research assistance for untenured faculty members at the School, a vital priority in The Campaign for Wharton. "Untenured faculty members really push themselves very hard, and we wanted to reduce their teaching load and support their research at this key point in their careers," Cindy explains. "This also helps Wharton hire and retain the best young professors."

"Those of us who are fortunate enough to be able to give back have a responsibility to participate," says Joshua J. Harris, W'86. "It's giving back to an educational institution that gave me the skills to succeed. I come from a middle-class background, and I feel it's important to allow other people to have the same chance that I did."

Joshua Harris, the founding senior partner at Apollo Management LP, understands how private equity can infuse fresh capital and long-term vision, free from public-market pressures. "Wharton is in a unique position to serve -- showing leadership and pioneering new innovations, including in private equity," says Josh. Thanks to his generosity, the School can now strengthen its scholarship and research in the area of private equity through the The Joshua J. Harris Endowed Fund.

Andrew M. Heller, WG'79, CEO of Virginia-based Heller Capital Corporation, knows that keeping Wharton at the forefront of global business education requires a steady expansion of the renowned faculty at the School. Support of Wharton and its faculty has become one of Andrew's chief philanthropic priorities, and to that end, in the current Campaign, Andrew funded the Andrew M. Heller Professorship. The new Chair was awarded in 2011 to Christian Terwiesch, Professor of Operations and Information Management.

"In so many ways, I think alumni can give back to the School," Andrew says. "Over the years, I've become a true believer that the Wharton approach in curriculum is the single best approach. Gifts from alumni help the School to offer additional programs and make it a much richer experience."

When Marc A. Spilker, W'86, and Diane Isaacs Spilker, W'87, graduated from the Wharton School, they left with a feeling of duty. "We felt a connection to the School and a sense of responsibility to perpetuate the legacy and the culture," Diane says. "I think alumni really should try to be part of the Wharton community and create awareness about the School.

"Together the Spilkers have endowed generous undergraduate scholarships, opening Wharton's doors to accomplished students who otherwise could not afford a Penn education. Now the Co-Head of the Investment Management Division at Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., in New York, Marc understands first-hand how the academic demands at Wharton set the groundwork for innovative careers in business leadership. As Diane puts it, the School "shows students how to think and accept different points of view, which lets people innovate outside the box."

Increased access - a central goal in The Campaign for Wharton - fosters diversity and builds a more robust learning environment for everyone at the School, Marc explains. "Diversity includes everything from different learning styles to different socioeconomic backgrounds. Any kind of diversity adds value to the School and, by extension, to the University of Pennsylvania as a whole."

As a growing number of global business schools compete for the best and brightest students, the generosity of Judith L. Bollinger, WG'81, and her husband, William G. Bollinger, continues to keep Wharton at the vanguard. Their endowment of a scholarship and a fellowship at the Wharton School benefits both undergraduate and MBA students, with a special emphasis on international students.

Judith Bollinger, an international advocate for Wharton, serves as a member of the School's Executive Board for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, as well as a member of the Board of Overseers. "With a Wharton education and experience, these students are prepared to tackle economic, political and social problems," she says. "We provide the financial help so that they can provide the solutions."

Through the fund, the couple is assisting Ph.D. candidates in behavioral finance, a reflection of Mr. de la Cruz's 45-year experience in business. A former investment banker, Mr. de la Cruz is now chairman of CC1 Companies, Inc., the bottler of Coca-Cola in Puerto Rico and Trinidad. Higher education is a Philadelphia tradition for his family, three generations of which have attended the University of Pennsylvania.

Painting in Photo: Martin KippenbergerUntitled, 1990, oil on canvas, 71" x 59"
Photo credit: Mark Roskams Photography

When Bobby Turner, W'84, measures success in urban real estate, profits are not the only element in the final analysis. As Managing Partner of Los Angeles-based Canyon Capital Advisors, Bobby passionately believes that businesses should approach investing with a commitment to achieving positive financial returns, fostering opportunities for residents in the communities in which they invest, and embracing environmental responsibility.

Now, a generous gift to the Wharton School from Bobby and his wife, Lauren Golub Turner, W'85, will help the School fund the Lauren and Bobby Turner Social Impact Executive Speaker Series as well as new courses in corporate responsibility and social impact. "We benefited as students at Wharton because the alumni who preceded us gave back and made sure Wharton continued to lead," Bobby Turner said. "The same is true today. If we don't step up, few others will. It's our turn."

Jeff Sutton, W'81, President and Founder of Wharton Properties, a commercial real estate company, says that his Wharton School education laid the groundwork for his professional success. Mr. Sutton owns more than 115 properties in prime locations throughout New York, including many of the most prestigious streets in New York such as Fifth Avenue, Times Square, and SoHo.

In support of the school's entrepreneurial programs, he has established the Jeff Sutton Entrepreneurial Intern Fund. Thanks to Mr. Sutton's generous support, the School now provides the Global Entrepreneurial Internship Program, which encourages students to forego the traditional summer internship in an established corporation and experience first-hand the challenges and opportunities of working at a start-up company.

Mr. Sutton, like many other Wharton graduates, feels that "Wharton prepares you for anything." Through his support he is encouraging future generations of Wharton students to make the most of their educational experience during their time at the School.

Forget the creature comforts of home. From the Grand Tetons and the Patagonian Trail to Mount Kilimanjaro, the Wharton Leadership Ventures program drops undergraduate and MBA students into challenging natural landscapes and compels them to lead. "By giving students responsibility to achieve certain goals, Leadership Ventures teaches them what works, what doesn't and how to become a more effective leader," says Grant G. Behrman, WG'77, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at New York and San Francisco-based Behrman Capital. To Grant, the trips deliver "a very effective paradigm for honing leadership skills in a practical setting and distinguishes the Wharton School."

Grant's commitment is helping Wharton to grow the program offerings and engage more students. The expansion of the Leadership curriculum is an important part of the School's Campaign goals; keeping Wharton at the forefront of practical business education. "I feel grateful and indebted to the School for providing me with a good education," Grant says.

Jeffrey S. Katz, WG'71, P'12, CEO and Principal Owner at Sherwood Equities Inc., a prominent New York real-estate firm, says giving back to Wharton "is not really a matter of how much to give. It's a matter of realizing it's the right thing to do."

Jeffrey is also generous with his time, visiting the University of Pennsylvania campus once or twice a year to speak with students and share his insights. "It's actually a lot of fun," Jeff says. "I think I learn more than I share. Wharton did a lot for me, and I'm in a position now to give back. How could people not?"

As a Wharton student, Jeff was inspired by the passionate faculty and driven student community that together "ignited a way of thinking that has helped me in business over the years. Wharton is the one school where I have never met anybody who didn't love it."

"I feel very fortunate to have had such a great undergraduate experience at Wharton, and I feel an obligation to reciprocate and give something back to the School," says Damian M. Dalla-Longa, W'06. After accepting a prime job offer with Bain Capital in Boston, Damian pledged his signing bonus to the School before he even had a diploma in his hands. His pledge, made as an unrestricted contribution to The Wharton Fund, made Damian the youngest member of the Young Franklin Society and a Founder in the Benjamin Franklin Society.

"More undergraduates should consider doing this," says Damian, now with Greenwich, CT-based Silver Point Capital. "Why wait?"

According to Joseph R. Zimmel, WG'79, contributions to the School are investments. "People who went before me were generous in their support of the School, and that made the place what it was for me. I feel part of my responsibility - and a way to show my gratitude - is to make sure the place is there for students in the decades to come."

Retired as a Managing Director at Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Joe has gone on to serve on several public, private and not-for-profit boards. His leadership extends to the Wharton School, where Joe has taken an influential role in The Wharton Fund, a central priority of The Campaign for Wharton.

"I give to the Wharton Fund because I want to empower the School's leadership to make the University of Pennsylvania and Wharton as good as they can be," Joe says. "My support of Wharton is rooted in what the School meant to me and how much I continue to have faith in how it will guide the next generation."

"There isn't a place in the School that technology doesn't touch," says Deirdre Woods, Chief Information Officer and Associate Dean, Wharton Computing. Reaching out across the School and more than 80 other colleges and universities, Wharton delivers more than 30 computer-based applications for business education. In addition to running robust networks and core computer programs, specialists work tirelessly to blend the newest and most relevant technologies into the classroom experience.

"The size and scope of Wharton demands a high level of operational excellence and we need to keep looking forward to sustain the level of innovation for which Wharton is known," says Associate Dean Woods. "With the resources in hand to guide innovation, the School can be a premier leader in the holistic transformation of business education for the 21st century."

http://technology.wharton.upenn.edu/