Leavey Professor’s Influence Leads to Establishment of Endowed Chair
Leavey School of Business benefited from the creation of the Gerry and Bonita Wilkinson Endowed Chair, which helps support the holding professor beyond the capacities of their normal salary. The chair would not have been created if not for the expert teaching of W.M. Keck Foundation Professor of Economics Mario Belotti, who told the story of his interactions with the Wilkinsons in a press release from Leavey.
Belotti received a phone call from Gerry out of the blue one day some 26 years after having him as a student in one of his classes. Gerry had asked Belotti for permission to attend his special accounting class designed only for local students, which he granted. The course did not count for Business School credit, although some state universities did accept it. Gerry thanked Belotti for his accounting class, which he credited with improving his management of his machine rental business and increasing his profits and asked to make a gift towards the university.
Belotti was surprised to learn that they had no record of Gerry in the school’s archives, which meant that he only attended the special accounting class. Gerry offered the school a $600,000 donation in cash after meeting and reacquainting himself with Belotti. The money was used to establish scholarships for undergraduates in the Business School and MBA Agribusiness students.
Belotti got to know the couple and took the hardworking pair on a trip to Northern Italy as thanks for their generosity. The Wilkinsons decided that they wanted their names to be remembered in Leavey forever. Belotti suggested that an endowed chair was the best way to accomplish this, to which the couple agreed. After speaking with the president of the university, the Wilkinsons donated $1 million to create their endowed chair in the School of Business and selected Professor Moburg as the first recipient. The honor is now held by Hoje Jo of the finance department at Leavey.
About the Author
Ben Smolin
Staff Writer, covering MetroMBA's news beat for L.A., San Francisco, and London.
