Cisco Chairman donates $31 million for UW building renovation

Cisco Chairman donates $31 million for UW building renovation

The University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Education Building, which originally housed the College of Mechanics and Engineering has been unfinished for 104 years, but thanks to a $31 million alumni gift the university will modernize and complete the building, one of Bascom Hill’s signature historic landmarks.
John P. and Tashia F. Morgridge, both UW-Madison alumni, hope the Education Building can exemplify a careful restoration effort. That means preserving the building’s history and aesthetics while making it live up to modern standards for accessibility and technology.
John Morgridge, a 1955 graduate of the School of Business, is chairman of the board at Cisco Systems and is credited with growing the company into a telecommunications giant during his tenure as CEO. Tashia Morgridge graduated from the School of Education in 1955 and has kept in contact with the school, serving on its Board of Visitors. She is a retired special-education teacher and has volunteered as a teacher for the learning disabled.
“As we proceed with major redevelopment elsewhere on campus, John and Tashia Morgridge recognize the importance of preserving the campus’s heritage,” said UW-Madison Chancellor John D. Wiley. “This gift will allow us to tastefully restore a 104-year-old building so that it can serve the university — and its mission to turn out highly qualified educators and other professionals — for at least another 100 years.”
The couple’s support for UW-Madison also includes gifts to the School of Business; the Morgridge Class of ’51 Scholarship; John P. and Tashia F. Morgridge Scholarship Fund and a chair in reading, both in the School of Education; and a chair in computer science in the College of Letters and Science. They have supported such building projects as the Morgridge Auditorium in Grainger Hall and the renovation of the Red Gym, which houses the Morgridge Center for Community Service.
The Morgridge family has also donated money to the School of Business, John P. and Tashia F. Morgridge Scholarship Fund and a chair in reading, both in the School of Education; and a chair in computer science in the College of Letters and Science. They have supported such building projects as the Morgridge Auditorium in Grainger Hall and the renovation of Red Gym, the home of the Morgridge Center for Community Service.