Cornell University turns 150 this year, and to mark the occasion, an alumnus of both the Johnson Graduate School of Management and the College of Engineering, together with his wife, have made a gift to help support faculty renewal and enhanced collaboration between the business and engineering schools, Cornell announced this month.
The Eiko and Sudi Mariappa Sesquicentennial Fellowship, named for benefactors Sudi Marippa—who earned his Johnson MBA in 1986 after graduating from the College of Engineering with a BS in chemical engineering in 1982—and his wife, is designed to draw talented academics to Cornell to serve as both teachers and mentors.
Marippa recalls fondly Johnson as a place where professors took great pride in teaching. “They’re not just in the classroom to support their research,” he said as part of an article on the Johnson website. “Each of the professors I had … was extremely passionate. They challenged you and showed you how to value, how to prioritize. They made you feel that you were part of what they were doing. You felt you were part of that energy. And that stays with you.”
Mariappa went on to become managing director and portfolio manager with mutual-fund giant PIMCO, where he continually draws on decision-making and organizational skills instilled in him by his Cornell education, he says.
The Mariappas have given generously to the Johnson School for years, including establishing a graduate fellowship in 2009-10. This most recent gift is in response to Cornell’s Faculty Renewal Sesquicentennial Challenge, a university-wide initiative to strengthen the faculty, which will match the gift to double its impact.
Mariappa says he hopes the new fellowship will help Johnson recruit younger professors to replace some who are retiring, support Cornell’s expansion into the Cornell Tech campus in New York City, and strengthen the relationship between the two schools he attended.
Learn more about the Johnson School’s Eiko and Sudi Mariappa Sesquicentennial Fellowship.
