Bohemian Foundation Commits Up to $3 Million for College of Business Expansion in Rockwell Hall

The Fort Collins-based Bohemian Foundation, a longtime supporter of Colorado State University, has committed up to $3 million for a planned expansion of Rockwell Hall, which is home to the College of Business.

The college is in the process of raising funds for the $16 million, 34,600-square-foot addition to the building. The new addition is expected to house three 75-seat tiered classrooms and six 45-seat classrooms as well as additional faculty offices, meeting rooms and gathering space.

"Colorado State University is deeply grateful for the phenomenal support from the Bohemian Foundation over the years," said Joyce Berry, vice president for Advancement and Strategic Initiatives. "The Bohemian Foundation, true to its mission, is making a difference in people’s lives."

The Bohemian Foundation has committed $1.5 million as a challenge grant for the new addition with another $1.5 million for specific upgrades to enhance the building plans.

"The faculty and administrators leading the College of Business emulate the same qualities they seek to produce in their students.  This along with the fact the programs are producing  socially responsible, environmentally conscious students who are making a difference in the lives of people around the globe gets us excited," said Joe Zimlich, CEO of Bohemian Companies. "The new Global Social and Sustainable Enterprise master’s degree program in particular is filling a void by training young entrepreneurs to think about the world as their community, which is a role commonly filled by Non Governmental Organizations not entrepreneurs."

"The college and the university are grateful to the Bohemian Foundation for recognizing the growth on the horizon for the college," said Dean Ajay Menon. "Our facilities are at the core of our ability to attract the best professors and create an atmosphere where our students learn effectively."

In October, the Bohemian Foundation announced $400,000 in grants to enhance the new master’s program in sustainable enterprise. The 18-month Master of Science in Business Administration degree in Global Social and Sustainable Enterprise, or GSSE, teaches students to use entrepreneurial, sustainable approaches to address the great global challenges of poverty, environmental degradation, and poor health. The program ultimately could help some of the world’s three billion people who live on less than $3 a day with creating their own sustainable solutions and businesses.

The Bohemian Foundation is a private family foundation that focuses on promoting community awareness and involvement, involving people and organizations in working together to make the community a better place to live, and encouraging and enabling area youth to access the resources that will help them grow and thrive as productive members of the community. Bohemian’s primary focus has been the Fort Collins area.

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