u University's largest donors tour business
By ERIN LaRUFFA
Assistant News Editor
The strong American economy will now help Notre Dame students beyond increasing their post-graduation job prospects.
Notre Dame graduate Tom Mendoza, '73, and his wife Kathy recently donated $35 million to the newly renamed Mendoza College of Business. The couple, who visited the University this week, was able to donate such a large amount of money in part due to the booming stock market.
"In the past year, our stock has done spectacularly well," Mr. Mendoza said, referring to the stock of Network Appliance (NetApp), a Silcon Valley-based business of which he is senior vice president of sales and marketing.
Mr. Mendoza said he contacted the University to ask what he could do to make an impact on the most people. Executive Vice President of Notre Dame Father William Beauchamp and Sean Farrell, a representative from the Alumni Association on the West Coast, visited Mr. Mendoza in California to discuss the donation.
He told Farrell and Beauchamp to find a way for him to make a "significant impact" at Notre Dame, but instructed the two not to worry about the actual dollar amount, Mr. Mendoza said.
"It had to be something my wife and I wanted to do," he said, noting that a college's endowment is very important because the school invests the money and then spends the earnings of the investments.
"Tom wanted to do something truly significant, and I think this is pretty significant," Mrs. Mendoza said. In the past, the couple had donated money for scholarships in the name of Mr. Mendoza's father.
"I respect greatly what the University represents in general," he said. "I feel glad to be able to do this for Notre Dame."
He was comfortable with endowing the College of Business in part because of the leadership of Dean Carolyn Woo, Mr. Mendoza said. He is confident that the College's administration will continue to improve the school.
Mendoza hopes his endowment will allow the College to expand into areas it would not have otherwise been able to explore.
"I don't want any control [over the College]
All I'm trying to do is give them resources to make the right decisions," he said. "We're just happy to give them the money to help them compete. The business school world is very competitive."
The College will soon be renamed the Mendoza College of Business. Both Woo and Mr. Mendoza explained that many business schools, such as the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School, are named after the people who provided their endowments.
The Mendozas, with their perspective as executives at a Web-based business, will also have an advisory role at the College. Forty percent of NetApp's business is done on the Internet.
The Mendozas have worked for several start-up companies, all of which been successful enough to go public.
"I think we can help [with e-business]. We are part of that world," Mr. Mendoza said.
The College has also asked Mr. Mendoza to give periodic lectures, something he already does at Stanford University.
Mrs. Mendoza, who is NetApp's senior director of worldwide strategic alliances, will now serve on the College's advisory council.
Mrs. Mendoza, who attended the University of Oklahoma, began her career as a journalist. Executives working in Ross Perot's company saw an interview she did, and decided to hire her. Ever since, she has worked in the business world.
Her experience with the technological field will add a perspective not currently represented on the advisory council, Mrs. Mendoza said.
"I think Carolyn [Woo] got very excited about having a successful female who knows about venture capital [serving on the council]," Mendoza said.
Like any member of the advisory board, Mrs. Mendoza will advise the College and offer feedback on certain matters, Woo said.
It is not uncommon for a Notre Dame college to have donors serving on its advisory council.
"The vast majority of advisory council members are strong [financial] supporters of our University," said Daniel Reagan, Executive Director of Development, the department that handles donations to the University. At the same time, council members must also bring expertise to the council.
"All the members
bring value to the council," Reagan said. "They're being supportive of the University and their particular area
We value their thoughts, their ideas, their concerns."
University President Father Malloy is responsible for inviting people to become council members.
While alumni are the largest source of donations, the University also receives funds from parents, friends, foundations, estates, organizations and corporations, Reagan said.
The development office is set up in such a way that different personnel are assigned to different constituencies. For example, a specific person is responsible for seeking corporations that might have a natural interest in Notre Dame because of research being conducted here or because the company frequently recruits Notre Dame graduates.
"Almost all contributions certainly major contributions are a result of going back and forth" between the University and the donor, Reagan said. That way, both the University and the donor will both make sure the donation will have an impact both sides desire.
There is also an Annual Fund involving direct mail and other forms of communication that reach the masses of alumni, according to Reagan.
Donors to the Annual Fund are entered into a football ticket lottery, while more significant donors are given the opportunity to purchase tickets.
"Donors are giving because they believe in this place, not for what they get," said Reagan. "We try to assist them in any way we can."
In the 1997-1998 fiscal year, the University received donations of more than $132 million. That sum ranks in the top 25 nationally in terms of total gifts.
Of that total, approximately half went towards endowment. Another $16 million was donated without restrictions as to how the money could be spent. Alumni donations accounted for more than $51 million of all donations.
"We work in a very personal way with our alumni in terms of leadership," Reagan said. "It's the responsibility of the University to articulate where progress can be made."
The Mendozas' gift is part of the ongoing "Generations" campaign, which initially had the goal of creating 100 new endowed professorships. The Mendozas' endowment in is the largest gift in the University's history.
"That's a very uncommon gift
and extremely generous," Reagan said.
The Mendozas came to Notre Dame this week to meet with College students and faculty.
In the standing-room-only Jordan auditorium on Tuesday, the Mendozas spoke of their donation and their business in general to a crowd including both undergraduate and MBA students.
"We've had quite a buzz around the College the past month of so," Woo told the audience before introducing the couple. "We just wanted to bring the Mendozas to meet our school."
Mr. Mendoza never imagined that he would be wealthy enough to make such a large donation, he said. Upon graduation from Notre Dame, he was unsure if he wanted a career in business, but soon decided it would be enjoyable.
"The two of us did not come from money," he said, adding that when he began attending Notre Dame in 1969, his father made only $12,000 a year. Mr. Mendoza explained that he and his wife were able to attend their respective universities because they received financial aid.
When the couple was first married, they aspired to "do something special," as opposed to striving to achieve only financial success, Mr. Mendoza said.
Mr. Mendoza offered advice to students in the room. They should find a company with values they can believe in, as well as one with an expanding market, Mr. Mendoza said.
He is proud to have his family's name on the College of Business, and reading about Notre Dame graduates who do "special things" will also add to his pride in his investment, Mendoza said.
"This is a special place that turns out special people
both undergrad and graduate," Mr. Mendoza said.
His company had three interns from Notre Dame and also hired one of the University's graduates last year.
"Going to Notre Dame in my opinion is a great opportunity
It's a dream," he said, telling the crowd that when he received his acceptance letter from the University, he did not believe he had really been accepted.
In addition to their money, the Mendozas also offer the College their "passion and energy," as well as knowledge about technology, Woo said.
"This gift is wonderful and not just about money. It's about the whole link to Silicon Valley," Woo said.
Woo also said that the couple values success, responsibility and sharing.
"This is about what Notre Dame stands for," she said.
"People keep thanking us
but this is our pleasure," Mendoza said.
All News Stories for Thursday, April 13, 2000
