PSEG Presents Rutgers Business School with $2 Million Gift at Groundbreaking Celebration for the School's New Headquarters in Ne
May 01 2008 - 5:29PM
PR Newswire (US)
NEWARK, N.J., May 1 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- PSEG has announced a
$2-million leadership gift to support Rutgers Business
School-Newark and New Brunswick's new, state-of-the-art facilities
in downtown Newark. The gift was announced on April 23, at an event
celebrating the beginning of construction on Rutgers Business
School's future home at 1 Washington Park and the launch of the
capital campaign to support the school's new Newark headquarters.
The contribution from PSEG follows a $5 million commitment from
Prudential, announced earlier this month: $3 million for an endowed
faculty chair and $2 million to support the creation of a center
dedicated to business ethics and leadership in the business,
non-profit and philanthropic arenas. In announcing the gift,
Richard T. Thigpen, Chairman of the PSEG Foundation and PSEG Vice
President for State Governmental Affairs, said, "It's wonderful to
see Rutgers Business School under new leadership and accelerating
the renaissance of the City of Newark. It is evident that the
business school embraces the diverse population and the growth of
talent available in the State of New Jersey and the nation."
Michael R. Cooper, PhD., Dean of Rutgers Business School, spoke of
the new building as just part of the plan to position Rutgers
Business School as one of the premier business schools in the
nation. He explains, "Rutgers Business School will be more focused
on the needs of business world, cultivating strong corporate
partnerships, and providing multidisciplinary management education
that leverages Rutgers' global reputation in the sciences. We also,
of course, emphasize providing real-world, global experiences
through internships and many other corporate involvements." Dean
Cooper also discussed the school's role as an important catalyst in
the revitalization of the northern end of Newark, envisioning a
premier business school in the heart of a vibrant new 24-hour,
university-centered city. Said Cooper, "We are grateful to
Prudential and PSEG for taking the lead as the first of our private
partners to commit to supporting the 'new' Rutgers Business School.
This is a winning investment on behalf of our students, the global
corporate community, and the residents and businesses of Newark and
New Jersey." Noted Rutgers University President Richard L.
McCormick, "It is hard to overstate the critical importance of
Rutgers Business School to the future of the university, this great
city, and the State of New Jersey. With this new home, Rutgers
Business School will have new and invaluable opportunities to
interact with business leaders, creating new synergies between
their expertise and ours. Its location is already creating new
enthusiasm, enhancing the connection among corporate giants, city
government, and community and cultural leaders as they continue the
renaissance of Newark." New Rutgers Facilities at 1 Washington Park
The Newark programs of Rutgers Business School are scheduled to
relocate to 1 Washington Park, a 17-story office tower, in the fall
of 2009. The move will substantially improve the quality of the
business school's facilities and classroom technology, while
expanding its capacity to meet the rapidly increasing demand for
business education and the needs of growing undergraduate and
graduate student bodies. As part of the renovations taking place at
the new headquarters, a two-story pavilion will be constructed as
the architectural centerpiece, consisting of soaring glass walls
and distinctive "Rutgers red" tiling. The pavilion will house an
entry atrium, a new Global Market Financial Center trading room,
and three large lecture halls. State-of-the-art facilities will
include undergraduate, graduate and executive classrooms and
meeting spaces to accommodate Rutgers Business School's Newark
enrollment of approximately 3,500 students. The building also will
offer such amenities as student lounges, a cafe, and a rooftop
patio that will serve as a "green space" for the building. Students
and faculty will derive tremendous benefit from the building's
prime location in a global business epicenter -- near the
headquarters of major corporations, and with excellent access to
public transportation. With easy access to Newark Penn Station and
Newark Broad Street Station, New York City is less than 20 minutes
away. The project is the second largest capital investment in
Rutgers history, with $83 million committed for the purchase,
complete renovation, and expansion of the facility. The project is
being funded by an $18-million state appropriation, $7 million
through federal New Market Tax Credits, and the balance invested by
Rutgers directly. The Rutgers Business School building capital
campaign seeks to raise $20 million in private funding to support
the project. "Michael Cooper joined us as Dean early last summer,
and ushered in one of the most exciting phases in Rutgers Business
School's history," remarked Executive Vice Dean Rosa Oppenheim.
"Here we are, barely 10 months later, with a bright new vision,
stimulating new interdisciplinary program initiatives and plans for
enrollment expansion, increasing external recognition of our
outstanding students, faculty and worldwide academic programs, and,
of course, the progress towards a newly-renovated state-of-the-art
business school headquarters at 1 Washington Park." Among the other
speakers at the "off-site groundbreaking" celebration, held at The
Newark Club, were Steven J. Diner, Chancellor of Rutgers University
in Newark; Stefan Pryor, Deputy Mayor for Economic and Housing
Development for the City of Newark; William Best, Senior Vice
President and Territory Manager for Community Development Banking
at PNC Bank; Stanley Weeks, Executive Vice President of City
National Bank; Saurabh Narain, Chief Fund Advisor for National
Community Investment Fund and Senior Managing Director of Shore
Bank; and John Strangfeld, CEO of Prudential. About Rutgers
Business School-Newark and New Brunswick Rutgers Business
School-Newark and New Brunswick is an integral part of one of the
nation's oldest, largest, and most distinguished institutions of
higher learning: Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. It
has been accredited since 1941 by AACSB International -- the
Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business -- a
distinction that represents the hallmark of excellence in
management education. Today, Rutgers Business School is educating
more than 4,000 undergraduate and graduate students at two main
campuses in New Jersey as well as six satellite locations in New
Jersey, China, and Singapore. Steeped in academic excellence, with
a distinguished faculty and a corps of over 25,000 successful
alumni, Rutgers Business School is highly ranked by the Financial
Times, U.S. News & World Report, Business Week, and The Wall
Street Journal, and is recognized as one of the top three business
schools in the greater New York City area. Alumni of the school
include CEOs and CFOs of leading corporations in the United States
and abroad. The school is home to numerous outreach and academic
research centers. For additional information, visit
http://www.business.rutgers.edu/. * PHOTOS AVAILABLE * DATASOURCE:
Public Service Enterprise Group (PSEG) CONTACT: Bridget Daley, for
Rutgers, +1-973-353-5177 Web site: http://www.business.rutgers.edu/
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