SMU Breaks Ground on Extensive Expansion And Renovation of Cox School of Business

DALLAS (SMU) – SMU is celebrating the future of the Cox School of Business and its role as a driver of Dallas innovation, breaking ground today on a $140 million renovation and expansion project designed to train students for a collaborative and technologically integrated world.

The two-year project will expand the school’s footprint by more than 30 percent, with the construction of four new buildings connecting the existing facilities into cohesive space that supports collaboration within the Cox School and across the campus, as well as with the Dallas business community.

“This project will add to the Cox School’s stellar national reputation and will enable it to continue attracting outstanding students, faculty and industry partners,” said SMU President R. Gerald Turner. “Since 75 percent of our Cox School graduates stay in Texas, this ambitious project is a commitment to SMU’s role as a talent magnet for the state and the North Texas region.”    

Turner announced today that the Cox School’s renovated and expanded facilities will be called the David B. Miller Business Quadrangle, honoring Miller for his decades-long financial support and leadership of the Cox School. A former Mustang basketball standout, Miller ’72, ’73 and his wife, Carolyn Miller, and The David B. Miller Family Foundation made a $50 million commitment to SMU in October 2019 – half of which was earmarked for the Cox School project. That historic commitment, the largest alumni gift in the history of the University, is a dramatic punctuation to the relationship that began when Miller arrived at SMU in 1968 on an athletic scholarship.

As part of the University’s multiyear fundraising campaign, SMU Ignited: Boldly Shaping Tomorrow, more than 50 generous donors have already invested more than $100 million toward new and enhanced facilities at Cox, including these new principal gifts:

• $5 million from Fritz Duda and Mary Lee Duda and The Fritz and Mary Lee Duda Foundation
• $2 million from Susan Smith Cooper ’62
• $1 million from Harlan R. Crow and Katherine Raymond Crow ’94
• $1 million from Jennifer Tucker Clyde ’85 and R. Andrew Clyde ’85 and Murphy USA

A list of those who have given $1 million or more to the project appears below, and the full list of donors to date is available at smu.edu/cox-future.

“We are retooling the Cox School to create a more collaborative environment – 

to give students and faculty easier access to collaborate, to gather and share ideas and gain inspiration from one another,” said Cox School Dean Matthew B. Myers. “We will offer students more opportunity to obtain their business education in a ‘9 to 9’ environment, meaning they’ll come to classes, stay for lunch or dinner, work together with other students and their professors, and remain connected with and at Cox all day long. In short, our improved facilities will nurture an environment that will lead to a richer learning experience and a lifetime of connections. This really marks a new era for the Cox School.” 

Find more information on the renovation and expansion plans – including a virtual tour of the future David B. Miller Business Quadrangle – at smu.edu/cox-future.

Donors of $1 million or more to the Cox School renovation and expansion, as of April 28, 2022:

$25 million lead donor:

• David B. Miller ’72, ’73 and Carolyn L. Miller and The David B. Miller Family Foundation

$5 million to $24.9 million:

• Anonymous (2)
• Jane R. Bolin and Pat S. Bolin ’73
• Gina L. Bridwell and Tucker S. Bridwell ’73, ’74
• Fritz Duda and Mary Lee Duda and The Fritz and Mary Lee Duda Foundation
• Aurelia C. Heppner and Brad K. Heppner ’88
• Katy A. Miller and Kyle D. Miller ’01
• Kim M. Shaddock and William C. Shaddock ’74
• Bryan S. Sheffield ’01 and Sharoll M. Sheffield

$1 million to $4.9 million:

• Allison T. Benners and Frederick H. Benners, Jr. ’90, ’97
• Jennifer Tucker Clyde ’85 and R. Andrew Clyde ’85 and Murphy USA 
• Susan Smith Cooper ’62
• Harlan R. Crow and Katherine Raymond Crow ’94
• Katherine E. Georgas and William J. Georgas
• Mark C. Griege ’81 and Peggy Griege
• Barry M. Kitt and Beth M. Kitt
• Michael T. McGuire ’05 and Natalie K. McGuire
• Kenneth R. Morris ’72 and Linda A. Morris and the Morris Foundation

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SMU is the nationally ranked global research university in the dynamic city of Dallas.  SMU’s alumni, faculty and more than 12,000 students in eight degree-granting schools demonstrate an entrepreneurial spirit as they lead change in their professions, communities and the world. Building on its history of excellence, the University has launched SMU Ignited: Boldly Shaping Tomorrow – a multiyear $1.5 billion campaign to empower students, to enrich teaching and research, and to enhance our campus and community.