A week after UW-Madison Chancellor Rebecca Blank said in press reports that the university was in danger of losing its world-class stature because it could no longer afford to compete for top scientists, John and Tashia Morgridge, 1955 graduates of UW-Madison, announced a $100 million lead gift to the university, the largest single contribution from individual donors in the school’s history. The donation will be used to attract and retain world-class faculty through endowed chairs and endowed professorships by inspiring and matching, one-to-one, more donations as part of an upcoming UW comprehensive campaign slated to be announced in 2015 or 2016.
The Morgridges had previously donated a total of $100 million to establish the Morgridge Institute for Research and $32 million to renovate and expand the School of Education building, but their philanthropy also extends beyond Dane County. For example, they presented a $188 million gift to establish the Fund for Wisconsin Scholars, an endowment to provide grants annually to low-income students attending Wisconsin public colleges or universities, and they gave $8 million to the Wisconsin Technology Initiative to advance the use of technology in K-12 schools statewide.
After graduating from the UW Business School, John Morgridge went on to serve as president, CEO, and chairman of the board for Cisco Systems Inc. Tashia Morgridge is a retired special-education teacher.
