Funding the Future at UNC Kenan-Flagler

UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School continues its tradition of educational innovation with a transformative $150-million project. With a groundbreaking ceremony for the new Steven D. Bell Hall, the school entered a new era.

Steven D. Bell ’67, the building’s namesake, and Jamie Dimon, JPMorgan Chase & Co. chairman and chief executive officer, were featured speakers at the Sept. 29 ceremony held in front of the McColl Building.

When completed, Steven D. Bell Hall will allow the business school to admit 50% more students into its Undergraduate Business Program and modernize the learning environment for students in all of its top-ranked undergraduate business, master of accounting, MBA and PhD programs.

Funding included $75 million provided by the North Carolina General Assembly, with a matching $75 million in private funding, including a $25M gift from an anonymous donor, and the gift from Bell and his wife, Jackie Bell, who pledged $25 million in support of the new building. Chairman emeritus of Greensboro, North Carolina–based Bell Partners, Bell has described the building as his greatest investment ever in both real estate and in people.

“In life few people have the opportunity to influence thousands of young people,” Bell said. “I am honored and humbled to be able to help double the size of the Undergraduate Business Program. These young entrepreneurs will make North Carolina a strong and more productive place for all of us to live and work.”

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