Syracuse University alumnus Kwang Tan has donated $5 million to support the National Veterans Resource Center, the university announced Monday. 

Tan’s donation was made in part to fund the NVRC’s programming and research efforts, which aim to provide resources and tools for economic advancement to veterans and their families. The center, which Tan recently toured with Mike Haynie, vice chancellor for strategic initiatives and innovation, is expected to be completed in January. 

The multi-million dollar donation is part of the university’s Forever Orange capital campaign, a $1.5 billion fundraising effort to increase SU’s endowment and double the number of alumni engaged with the university. So far, the campaign has attracted 78,000 unique donors to gift $750,000. 

The Forever Orange campaign supports the university’s Academic Strategic Plan, an outline announced in 2015 that details academic goals and priorities the university aims to implement in the coming years. One goal of the strategic plan is to ensure the university is the best place for veterans and their families, a priority which the creation of the NVRC represents. “The Military Times” ranked SU as the No. 1 private school for veterans Oct. 29 in their 2020 “Best for Vets” list.

The NVRC’s 750-seat auditorium will be named after Tan, who graduated from SU’s College of Engineering and Computer Science in 1973. 

Tan’s donation to the NVRC is not his first investment in the university. He gifted $3.5 million to support the Barnes Center at the Arch, an inclusive health and wellness complex that opened in September. He also provides $60,000 each year to fund scholarships.

“I have a special relationship with Syracuse University, and was interested in helping provide Syracuse University with more premier spaces,” Tan said in the release. “This was a good opportunity to make a donation for such a dynamic new space.”

Tan joins several donors in providing multi-million dollar gifts to the university this fall. Lifetime Board of Trustees member Robert Miron and his wife Diane donated $7 million to finance a pathway between the Carrier Dome and the Arch and support SU Libraries on Nov. 4. John and Laura Lally donated $25 million in September to SU Athletics and the Martin J. Whitman School of Management. Elliot Stamler, an SU alumnus, pledged $5.48 million toward creating endowed funds for the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs. 

Published on November 11, 2019 at 11:03 am

Contact Emma: esfolts@syr.edu