Harvard University has received its biggest gift in school history — a $400 million donation from a prominent Wall Street investor.
Harvard says the endowment from John Paulson will support the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, which has led technology breakthroughs and is planning to expand. Paulson said it promises to become “the next major center of innovation.”
Officials said Wednesday the science school will be renamed the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences in Paulson’s honor. Paulson, a 1980 graduate of Harvard Business School, is founder and president of investment-management firm Paulson & Co. He started the company with $2 million in 1994, and now manages more than $19 billion.
Harvard received the gift amid a $6.5 billion fundraising campaign that started in 2013.