Management Event Raises $1 Million

Stuart Mandell, right, who began the management program at Lowell Tech 50 years ago, shakes Chancellor Marty Meehan's hand at the College of Management's 50th Anniversary. Looking on are keynote speaker Robert Manning '84, center, and Gary Mucica '71.

UMass Lowell celebrated 50 years of management education at a well-attended networking dinner on Sept. 20, and at the same time raised $1 million to expand learning facilities, student scholarships and other educational needs.

More than 400 faculty, alumni and other supporters gathered at the Campus Recreation Center to celebrate the management college’s growth as the leading business school in the region and hear about plans for the college’s future. Retired Marketing Prof. Stuart Mandell was honored for founding the first business program on campus 50 years ago. Also honored were seven leadership donors who each gave $100,000 to mark the anniversary, money that will fund scholarship and finance a possible new building for the college.

Keynote speaker Robert Manning ’84, CEO, president and chief investment officer of MFS Investments and chairman of the UMass Board of Trustees, spoke about the College of Management’s effect on his life and career.

“The character that I built here really gave me a competitive advantage when I went out to the business world to compete,” said Manning. “We call this place a repository of hope and opportunity. Nobody gets anywhere without someone helping them.”

Manning announced at the event that he and his wife Donna are tripling their commitment to an endowment that supports management and nursing students at the University - which University President Jack Wilson said will be matched by the system. “We are building this endowment because there are a lot of Rob Mannings here that need help. When I look into their eyes, I see Donna and myself,” said Manning. “This is the most rewarding thing I do in my life.”

Mandell and many of the program’s original faculty members returned to celebrate the occasion, mingling with former students and reminiscing.

“You are all here today because of the vision and perseverance of one man, Mr. Stuart Mandell.  He had the courage and dedication to found the first business program on this campus 50 years ago – not an easy task for a University that prided itself on its strong engineering and technology curriculum," said Chancellor Marty Meehan, noting there have been more than 13,000 management graduates since then, and that they represented about one-fifth of UMass Lowell’s 2008 graduating class.

Mandell said the biggest need for the College is its own building and he asked others to support this dream.

Also speaking were Kathy Carter, dean of the College of Management, and UMass President Jack Wilson.

Anniversary sponsors who donated more than $100,000 included: Kathleen B. Allen ’77, former chief financial officer of Millipore Corp.; Mark V. Forziati ’78, retired managing director of Tudor Investments in Boston; Richard L. Grande ’72, senior vice president at Morgan Stanley in Boston; John F. Kennedy ’70, president and CEO of Nova Analytics Corp. in Woburn; Robert J. Manning ’84; Gary M. Mucica ’71  visiting professor and director of the College of Management’s graduate programs; and Bernard Shapiro ’56, professor emeritus.

More than 400 people attended the event at the Campus Recreation Center.

From left, Dean Kathy Carter, UMass President Jack M. Wilson, Chancellor Marty Meehan, Donna '84 and Robert Manning '84, Yana and Bernie Shapiro '56.