University of Wisconsin College of Engineering announced Thursday, Sept. 17, a $22 million commitment from the Grainger Foundation for engineering undergraduates.

The ceremony opened with College of Engineering Dean Ian Robertson welcoming UW Chancellor Rebecca Blank, Provost Sara Mangelsdorf, mechanical engineering tutors, Bucky Badger and fifth-year mechanical engineer student Ben Wortmann, who announced the news.

The Grainger Foundation made a $22 million commitment for the next four years to establish the Grainger fund, a fund specifically for undergraduate engineering students, Wortmann said

The money, Wortmann said, will be used to create a maker space on the second floor of Wendt Commons to encourage design-oriented thinking and innovation. The fund will also be used to create new classrooms on the third floor of Wendt and provide for continual updates throughout the College of Engineering campus. 

Additionally, the money will permanently endow the undergraduate learning center and allow the college to develop programs and experiences to enhance the “marketability” of undergraduates in their future careers and aspirations, Wortmann said.

Blank thanked the Grainger Foundation for their generous commitment, as well as previous commitments the foundation has made to UW.

“I really look forward to seeing how the benefits of their generosity unfold and what it brings to future generations of students,” Blank said.

The donation will allow UW to extend opportunities to undergraduate students inside and outside of the classroom, she said.

With the funds from the Grainger Foundation, undergraduate engineering students will be provided with the best training for their future careers and beyond, Blank said.

“Our students are problem solvers, they’re creators and innovators who are going to sustain a future that is better and smarter and more sustainable than anything we can imagine today,” Blank said. “It is our job here to give you all the skills that you are going to need to solve the complex problems of the future.”

Robertson concluded the ceremony thanking the Grainger Foundation for helping the College of Engineering keep its commitment to provide the finest education to its students.

The Grainger Foundation, which contributed $25 million to the College of Engineering last year, has now committed a total of $47 million, Robertson said.

The commitment is a “visible testament” to the value of a UW engineering education, Robertson said.

“Engineers make planes fly, turn sunlight into power and make complex machines,” Blank said. “In short, they do things that seem impossible to non-engineers,” Blank said. “With partners like the Grainger Foundation we can give our students the kind of outstanding education that will enable all of you to do seemingly impossible things because that is how we are going to change the world.”