U. of Florida gets $30M from early MBA grad

0 Comments | Deseret News (Salt Lake City), Jan 20, 2007

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) -- One of the first graduates of the University of Florida's MBA program is giving $30 million to the school, which will use the money to create an endowment and construct a building to be named after him.

William R. Hough's donation, announced Friday, is the largest private gift ever received by the university.

Hough is the founder of William R. Hough and Company, a St. Petersburg-based municipal bond firm he headed for 38 years, until it was sold in 2004. Hough also was the chairman of Republic Bancshares Inc., which was acquired by BB&T Corp. in 2004.

He graduated in 1948, the first class of the school's MBA program.