AUSTIN, Texas—A formal dedication ceremony will be held at 4 p.m. Thursday (Oct. 26) for the Red McCombs School of Business at The University of Texas at Austin.
McCombs gave the University $50 million in May 2000 to enhance and strengthen its business school. To honor him for his extraordinary gift, the UT System Board of Regents named the school the Red McCombs School of Business.
At the May announcement, UT Austin President Larry R. Faulkner put the magnitude of the donation, the University’s single largest, into perspective when he said, “With this gift, Red McCombs is making a Texas-sized impact on the future of this state, now and for generations to come.”
McCombs said at the time, “This is not about me. It’s all about the students. Being the best in the world at what they do is a goal for all of us.”
The McCombs School is at the corner of 24th Street and Speedway. Thursday’s dedication ceremony will take place on the east side of the building in the plaza directly in front of Gregory Gymnasium. In addition to McCombs, Faulkner and two student representatives, speakers will include Dan Burck, interim chancellor of the UT System; Tom Loeffler, UT regent; Robert G. May, dean of the McCombs School; and Johnnie D. Ray, UT Austin’s vice president for resource development. A reception featuring live music and food will follow. The UT Austin Tower will be lit orange Thursday evening in honor of McCombs.
McCombs attended UT Austin in the late 1940s as a business administration student and has become a legend in Texas business. He is a recipient of the UT Austin Distinguished Alumnus Award and a member of the Texas Business Hall of Fame. His wide-ranging business interests include car dealerships, communications, professional sports, oil, ranching and real estate. He is co-founder (with Lowry Mays) of Clear Channel Communications, which owns 850 radio stations in markets across the United States as well as other communications ventures. He is the owner of the Minnesota Vikings and is former owner of the San Antonio Spurs and the Denver Nuggets.
McCombs also is well known for his philanthropy, particularly to humanitarian efforts, education and health organizations, including a generous donation to the medical relief effort for Kosovar refugees. In 1997, he gave UT Austin women’s athletics its largest-ever donation — $3 million for a new softball complex that bears the names of McCombs and his wife, Charline. He also has given significant donations to Southwestern University and is chair of their capital campaign. In addition, he also has donated his time, reading to students at San Antonio’s Mary Hull Elementary School that is attended by many at-risk students.
The McCombs School is a leading innovator in technology, globalization and entrepreneurship. Both Business Weekand U.S. News and World Reportconsistently have ranked the McCombs School among the top business schools in the country. This year, Business Weekranked the McCombs School #17, up one point from the school’s previous ranking. Hispanic Businessmagazine recently ranked the MBA program #3 in the nation for Hispanic business students, up two points from the previous year. The Public Accounting Reportranked the graduate and undergraduate accounting programs #1 and #2 respectively. U.S. New and World Reportranked nine of the undergraduate programs in the top 10, including accounting, #2; marketing, #3; e-commerce, #3; management information systems, #4; and entrepreneurship, #5.
For additional information on McCombs and his donation or on Thursday’s ceremony, contact: Jim Kunetka, Resource Development Office, (512) 475-9641, jkunetka@mail.utexas.edu; Kim Head, McCombs School of Business, (512) 232-7510, kim.head@bus.utexas.edu; or visit the Web site www.mccombs.utexas.edu/news/mccombs/
