Emory Report

February 2, 1998

 Volume 50, No. 19

Roberto Goizueta bequeaths
$20 million to business school

The Goizueta Business School has received a $20 million gift from the estate of Roberto C. Goizueta, former chairman of the board and chief executive officer of The Coca-Cola Company. The gift represents "a wonderful and visionary challenge to the new dean and his academic colleagues. We are grateful to the Goizueta legacy and are mindful of his uniquely successful leadership as a businessman and of his devotion to Emory," President Bill Chace said.

Goizueta initiated this endowment before his death with a $1.5 million gift to the school that bears his name; a bequest in his estate planning will complete the gift in 1998. The late businessman was a cherished friend of the school, providing wise counsel to its leaders, participating in graduation ceremonies and lecturing students as part of the Dean's Speaker series.

This gift will help Thomas Robertson, who officially joins the school as dean on July 1, to propel the Goizueta School to world-class stature. Brad Currey Jr., chairman of the board of trustees, believes Goizueta would have been pleased with the new dean. "Tom Robertson is an internationally recognized expert in marketing strategy and consumer behavior. He's a dual citizen of both the U.S. and the U.K. That would have delighted Roberto."

"The legacy of Roberto Goizueta is very powerful and meaningful as we move into the new millennium," Robertson said.

Goizueta's widow, Olga C. deGoizueta, said, "Roberto valued excellence in education, and I'm very pleased that his legacy will be an inspiration for business students for years to come."

The gift almost doubles the current $25 million endowment of the business school. It will allow the school to increase the size and stature of its faculty and provide additional fellowships and scholarships to students. Another hope has been to increase the number of endowed chairs, which this gift will help do.

-Jim Elliot


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