Worldwide Alumni Celebration concludes global tour of seven cities
London Business School has wrapped up its biggest ever Worldwide Alumni Celebration (WAC) event, which saw a record 2,800 alumni in more than 55 countries celebrate the successful completion of the School’s first ever fundraising Campaign.
As part of this year’s festivities, a three-week long tour saw events held in seven cities across the globe: London, Hong Kong, New York, Dubai, Sao Paolo, Mumbai and Sydney. Alumni and friends of the School joined staff and faculty for a night to remember in iconic venues ranging from London’s famed Victoria and Albert Museum to the imposing American Museum of Natural History, New York.
Susie Balch, Associate Dean – Advancement, London Business School, said:
“WAC is always a fantastic celebration of the London Business School community but this year was a particularly incredible set of events for the School as we celebrated success of our first comprehensive fundraising Campaign. This is a milestone moment in the School’s history, where we can say that our volunteering efforts and financial generosity have helped to secure this institution’s future. This huge success simply would not have been possible without the support of our entire alumni community and we are incredibly grateful to everyone who has been involved.”
Members of London Business School’s faculty travelled to 18 different cities, delivering their latest thought leadership on global business issues. The School’s alumni community also independently organised more than 90 WAC events on six different continents this year.
The Campaign was launched in 2013 with the aim of raising £100 million by 2018. Two years ahead of schedule, the Campaign raised £125.4 million to fund growth in teaching space, research output and scholarships.
More than 800 students will benefit from scholarships resulting from the Campaign’s 1,262 scholarship donors, including 32 corporate donors and 1,230 individuals. Funds raised are also being used for three new research centres: the AQR Asset Management Institute; the Leadership Institute and the Deloitte Institute of Innovation and Entrepreneurship.
More than 40,000 alumni contributed 124,712 volunteer hours to the Campaign.
A proportion of the funds raised are being used to purchase and redevelop Old Marylebone Town Hall in the heart of Westminster, which will be known as The Sammy Ofer Centre when it opens in 2017. The Centre, a short walk away from the School’s Regent’s Park campus, will create 70% additional teaching space.
