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Last updated on Sunday, March 25, 2018
(BLOOMINGTON) - Ming Mei, an Indiana University Alumnus and the CEO and Co-Founder of GLP, a leading provider of global logistics solutions, is donating $3 million to establish faculty and international studies at IU Bloomington.
News at IU Bloomington reports, at the School of Global and International Studies, $1.5 million will endow a tenured chair in Chinese economics and trade in the Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures. At the Kelley School, an equal gift portion establishes a tenured chair position in logistics, which will be based in either the Department of Finance or Department of Operations and Decisions Technologies.
The donor earned his Bachelor of Science degree in finance at the Kelley School in 1996 and has been a member of the school's Global Dean's Council since its inception in March 2016. He also holds an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and the School of Business and Management at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. He also attended the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School.
Mei has built GLP into one of the world's largest real estate fund managers, with over $46 billion of assets under management and a global portfolio of 62 million square meters spread across eight countries.
"The new faculty chairs that will be established through this gift will greatly strengthen Indiana University's ability to provide our students with an excellent understanding of the business principles and emerging industry trends necessary to succeed in a changing global economy," IU President Michael A. McRobbie said. "We are extremely grateful to Ming for his extraordinary generosity, his vision to ensure IU students graduate with a great global education and his continued support of his alma mater."
Idalene "Idie" Kesner, dean of the Kelley School and the Frank P. Popoff Chair of Strategic Management, said the new chair in logistics will greatly benefit students enrolled in supply chain management, and help them see both its operational and financial aspects.
"Ming has been a valued member of our Global Dean's Council, and this generous gift signifies his continued commitment to Kelley," Kesner said. "It also shows his vision. The field of logistics is growing at a rapid pace as boundaries in the global marketplace continue to fall, creating a more competitive market. A well-organized logistics infrastructure is critical, especially for emerging economies that can benefit from the advantages of globalization."
The endowed chair in the School of Global and International Studies will reinforce IU's position as a leader in China studies. Established in 1962, the school's Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures is renowned for its strengths in language training, cultural studies, history and social science. Adding expertise in Chinese trade policy and global economic engagement will hone the department's geopolitical focus.
"Ming's generous gift will deepen understanding of the factors that shape relations between the world's two largest economies," said Lee Feinstein, dean of the School of Global and International Studies. "We are grateful to Ming for this timely gift, which will further strengthen our renowned Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures, to the benefit of the school and the broader campus community."
The gift counts toward the $3 billion campaign, For All: The Indiana University Bicentennial Campaign, and a portion of the gift qualifies for the campaign's match, greatly increasing the overall impact of the gift.
For All: The Indiana University Bicentennial Campaign is taking place on all IU-administered campuses including IU Bloomington, IUPUI, IU East, IU Kokomo, IU Northwest, IU South Bend and IU Southeast. The campaign will conclude in June 2020 to coincide with IU's bicentennial year celebration. To learn more about the campaign, its impact and how to participate, visit forall.iu.edu.
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