The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Massachusetts have each received record-setting alumni donations that push forward program funding and institutional goals, an announcement revealed this week.

Courtesy Wharton School
Erika James, Dean of the Wharton School, with alumnus Bruce Jacobs following his record $60 million gift. The Wharton School

Wharton received its largest-ever alumni gift — $60 million — from alumnus Bruce Jacobs. Among other allocations, the gift will launch the Dr. Bruce I. Jacobs Master of Science in Quantitative Finance, Wharton's first new degree program in half a century. The program will strengthen training in quantitative finance, data analysis, and risk management amid growing demand in global financial markets.

At UMass Amherst, alum Dan Riccio has donated $50 million, the largest single contribution in the university's history, to support the College of Engineering. The gift will help fund scholarships, fellowships, and professorships, and aims to expand access, innovation, and academic excellence. The university will rename its College of Engineering to the Daniel J. Riccio Jr. College of Engineering

While neither school disclosed every detail about the donors' intentions beyond designated projects, both confirmed that the gifts will allow more ambitious scholarship programs, facility upgrades, and innovations in teaching and research. UMass noted that this donation arrives amid rising enrollment pressures and state budget challenges.