Incredible Impact

We received several new gifts of more than $1 million each this year. These gifts will support our new experiential learning building, scholarships for students and support faculty members in finance and accounting. We are deeply honored and humbled to receive this incredible support from our friends.

New Building

The Larry H. & Gail Miller Family Foundation provided $2.5 million to support a new building that will be home to experiential learning programming. This most recent gift adds to the more than $4 million previously given by the Miller Family Foundation to the Huntsman School to support programs aimed at preparing students with the skills and attributes needed in today’s fluid business environment. The new building will be located adjacent to Huntsman Hall.

“Our family is committed to advancing these important initiatives because we believe education unlocks doors and enriches lives,” said Gail Miller. “We are grateful for our partnership with Utah State University and the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business and look forward to seeing the advancements in our communities that result from these experiential learning opportunities.”

Blake Kirby

Huntsman School alumnus Blake Kirby donated $1 million to create the Dr. Philip R. Swensen Endowed Professor of Finance at the Huntsman School, named in honor of the late Dr. Swensen, a former professor of finance at Utah State University. 

During his 32 years as a professor of business and finance at Utah State, Dr. Swensen taught an estimated 15,000 students. He was known for his expertise in finance and investing and his aptitude for teaching, but also for remembering students by name and taking a personal interest in their lives. Kirby expressed profound gratitude for Dr. Swensen’s skill in teaching finance, which gave him the foundation for a successful career. “I am forever grateful he took an interest in mentoring me as a young professional,” said Kirby. “My deep relationship with him as a mentor, board member, business partner, and friend continued over the years and is one of the greatest blessings in my life. As a business leader, investor, and father, not a day goes by that I don’t utilize the lessons learned from my dear friend Phil. His wisdom will forever be echoing in my ear.”

Alan Hall

The Alan & Jeanne Hall Foundation committed $1 million to support the Huntsman School ProSales Program and to provide sales skills to students. The gift will support ongoing curricular and extracurricular opportunities around sales, including a minor in Technical Sales and a vibrant ProSales student club which has won national sales competitions and was recognized as the USU Organization of the Year last year. The Hall gift will further turbocharge a program with a nationally competitive presence and placement outcomes with Fortune 500 companies.

Larry Walther

Dr. Larry and Laurie Walther provided $1 million to support a professorship in accounting. Larry and Laurie Walther were transplanted Texans who became Utah State Aggies, and through the course of Larry’s long and storied career, transformed the accounting department at USU through unwavering dedication to excellence. Larry Walther cared deeply about his students, his profession of teaching, and the world of business. Laurie supported her husband in each step along the way. These passions most vividly came together in the lives of students, who learned about accounting and about life in Dr. Walther’s classes and continued to be mentored by their teacher long after they graduated from Utah State University. To honor the incredible impact of the Walthers’ on the Huntsman School, the professorship will be named the Larry and Laurie Walther Endowed Professorship.