Carlson School Hosts Successful Give To The Max Day

The strength of the Carlson School’s worldwide community of alumni and friends was on full display for Give to the Max Day. More than 300 donors, including more than 50 first-time donors, showed their support for philanthropic causes throughout the Carlson School on the University of Minnesota’s single largest day of giving. 

Jess Kowal, interim assistant dean for institutional advancement shared, “The success of the Carlson School’s Give to the Max Day efforts underscores the generous spirit of our community. Giving back through philanthropy is important to many throughout the state of Minnesota, and we are honored that so many Carlson School alumni and friends chose to support the next generation of business leaders this Give to the Max Day.”

This year, the Carlson School highlighted 12 campaigns on Give to the Max Day, allowing alumni and friends to support causes across the Carlson School ranging from scholarships to experiential programs and diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. Throughout the day, many donors shared why their personal experiences led them to choose the campaign they did.

Executive MBA (CEMBA) alumnae Connie Buechele, ’13 MBA, and 2023 MBA Reunion Committee Member supported the establishment of a scholarship that will help attract more women, students of color, entrepreneurs, and nonprofit professionals to the CEMBA program, commenting, “I chose to support the CEMBA Leadership Fund this Give to the Max Day because participating in CEMBA was such a wonderful opportunity for me and I want to support others who want and deserve the same great experience!”

Current MBA student Chris Hanson made a gift in honor of Mike Finch, faculty director of the school’s  Valuation Lab. Hanson, also a Medical Industry Leadership Institute Fellow, credits Finch as a large influence on his decision to attend the Carlson School: “I’ll never forget shadowing the Valuation Lab as a prospective student while debating whether or not to pursue my MBA, and hearing Mike ask a group why their product’s target market couldn’t be dogs instead of people. I realized I had so much to learn and just had to be in the Valuation Lab.” 

Making a gift to the Carlson Global Institute (CGI) Scholarship Fund inspired Jennifer Lien Will, ‘09 BSB, to reflect on her own time spent abroad as a Carlson School student. She shared, “I studied abroad 14 years ago and it has never left me. The travel experience, exposure to different cultures and education systems, and perspectives, not to mention the lifelong friends I met - were priceless. I often think back on my five months in Hong Kong and I am grateful to have had the experience. The only thing I would have done differently is to have studied there for two semesters instead of one.” 

Other campaigns hosted by the Carlson School on Give to the Max Day include the Dean’s Excellence Fund, Business Advancement Center for Health (BACH), Undergraduate Emergency Tuition Relief, Deloitte Foundation Scholars Program, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, Jennifer Houle Memorial Scholarship Fund, Grow North, KPMG Student Support Fund, and the MBA Sports Business Club.

Learn more about each campaign by visiting the Carlson School’s Give to the Max Day website at z.umn.edu/CarlsonGTMD.