Pitt receives $1 million

Of the Forbes.com 400 richest Americans list, No. 283 isn’t afraid to share his wealth with… Of the Forbes.com 400 richest Americans list, No. 283 isn’t afraid to share his wealth with the University of Pittsburgh.

David A. Tepper, a self-made billionaire who co-founded and now presides over New Jersey investment firm Appaloosa Management LP, recently donated $1 million to Pitt’s Discover a World of Possibilities capital campaign fund.

He is a 1978 graduate of Pitt’s College of Arts and Sciences.

Tepper’s gift, which will help the now billion-dollar campaign reach its goal of $2 billion, creates endowments for the athletics department, the School of Arts and Sciences and an undergraduate scholarship fund.

The endowment for the School of Arts and Sciences aids the history and philosophy departments, although Tepper was an economics major while at Pitt. In the two departments, the money will focus on bringing guest lecturers to campus, funding academic conferences and buying new materials and books, according to Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences John Cooper.

“The monies for history and philosophy will enable them to do things that they otherwise could not do,” Cooper said of Tepper’s gift. “It allows us to run stronger undergraduate and graduate programs.”

In the athletics department, the donation will help support the men’s basketball team.

In addition, students in need will receive a portion of the Tepper endowment through the establishment of a scholarship fund.

Tepper specifically wanted to help students with their tuition expenses, and “he believes in investing in people,” Albert J. Novak Jr., vice chancellor of Institutional Advancement, said.

This is not the first time that Tepper has made significant donations to higher education.

Tepper has also donated to the economics department, the Student Volunteer Outreach Program and the School of Arts and Sciences.

Tepper also made a $55 million donation to Carnegie Mellon University’s business school, where he earned an MBA in 1982. This gift resulted in the renaming of the school, now the David A. Tepper School of Business at Carnegie Mellon, in March 2004.

The 645th richest man in the world, Tepper resides in Chatham, N.J., with his wife, Marlene, and their three children, according to Forbes.com.