A $30 million gift to CSUF
Businessman and Cal State Fullerton alum Steven Mihaylo gave a record $30 million to the business school, which will now be named after him. Listen to the audiofile as he talks about “drawing a line in the sand” and going beyond, way beyond, an earlier gift. He is interviewed by OC METRO Business Magazine Executive Editor Craig Reem.


CS Fullerton’s $30 million gift
Cal State Fullerton alum Steven Mihaylo made a $30 million donation to the business school this month; a new building to open this fall has been named after him, pursuant to a $4.5 million gift made a year ago. Now, the College of Business and Economics will bear his name.

It is one of the largest gifts ever made to a CSU campus – Cal Poly San Luis Obispo’s architecture school received a $60 million bequest this past September.
“Without my education at Cal State Fullerton,” said Mihaylo at a dedication ceremony in the shadow of the new business building, “I wouldn’t be in the position today to do what I’m doing.” The 1969 graduate became a millionaire as one of the world’s largest providers of business telephone systems.

Mihaylo talked about the opportunity to give students financial assistance.“I’ve always believed that the only way to level the playing field is a well-educated, well-informed society. It behooves all of us to (help),” he said.

The business school’s dean, Anil Puri, said, “This gift is sizeable and imaginative enough to launch the university into the next half-century.” Cal State Fullerton has more business graduates working in Orange County than any other college’s alumni.

He noted that the money will go toward retaining faculty, hiring new faculty, endowing chairmen and women, improving its MBA program, and for scholarships and fellowships, among other uses. OCM

—Craig Reem









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