September 18, 2018UTSA receives $15 million gift and parcels of land downtown for construction of proposed School of Data Science and National Security Collaboration Center
UTSA today announced it has received a $15 million gift from San Antonio business leader Graham Weston to support the university’s proposed School of Data Science. The school is a major component in UTSA’s phased, 10-year approach to accelerating the development of its Downtown Campus as a destination for producing highly skilled professionals in big data and analytics, advancing economic development in the urban core and creating prosperity for San Antonio.
At the same time, UTSA is actively engaged in highly collaborative discussions with the City of San Antonio and Bexar County for the transfer of downtown parcels of land, valued at $13 million, to the university. Those parcels would be the sites for the new school, a National Security Collaboration Center, and for the relocation of the UTSA College of Business.
Earlier this month, The University of Texas System Board of Regents approved a $70 million Permanent University Fund (PUF) allocation for the School of Data Science and National Security Collaboration Center. Combined with the Weston gift and an additional $5 million in university funds, UTSA has now secured the $90 million needed to fully advance those two construction projects.
“The Board of Regents’ recent allocation of PUF funds to support physical space needed to propel UTSA’s advancement in data science and national security was a proud moment for us on many levels. While it helped to address UTSA’s construction needs, it also demonstrated the Regents’ confidence in the university’s leadership position in addressing critical workforce areas as well as its effectiveness in developing stronger public-private collaborations to make San Antonio and Texas as competitive as possible in the cyberspace arena,” said Sara Martinez Tucker, UT System regents’ chairman.
What we are witnessing today is the creation of transformative opportunities for San Antonio for generations to come
