Mills starting business grad school

0 Comments | Oakland Tribune, Apr 28, 2004 | by Alec Rosenberg, BUSINESS WRITER

OAKLAND -- Business Wire founder Lorry Lokey is donating $10 million to Mills College so it can create the only graduate business school in the West designed to prepare women for leadership and entrepreneurial success.

The Oakland private college announced the pledge Tuesday.

The Lorry I. Lokey School of Business will allow Mills to expand its Master of Business Administration program and help address the underrepresentation of women in MBA programs nationwide, program director Nancy Thornborrow said.

"We are deeply grateful to Mr. Lokey for his visionary commitment to preparing women for the 21st century workplace," Mills College President Janet Holmgren said in a statement.

The MBA program also is open to men, as are all Mills graduate programs. Mills only admits women as undergraduates.

Mills allows undergraduates in economics to earn BA and MBA degrees in five years instead of the typical six. Mills began its MBA program three years ago.

Enrollment has nearly doubled to 23 students from 12, Thornborrow said. With Lokey's gift, the goal is to grow to 100 students in five years.

"For most of Business Wire's 43 years, women have been an integral part of the company, and, for the past 15 years, they have been the majority in my management team," Lokey said in a statement. "We need MBA programs like those at Mills to provide our future leadership."

San Francisco-based Business Wire distributes news releases from companies and organizations to news media, financial markets and other sources.

Founded in 1852, Mills is known as a liberal arts college with programs such as education, music and poetry. The college has 735 undergraduate students and 475 graduate students. Graduate fees for next year are $16,800.

Mills began a Sesquicentennial Campaign in 2000, which has now raised $98 million for the college, including $13 million from Lokey.

The campaign's goal is to raise $100 million by the end of the year.