The University of Hawaiʻi law school has received $1 million from Jay Shidler, also a UH alum, to incorporate innovative business education.
UH Mānoa renamed its business school to the Shidler College of Business in 2006 after the commercial real estate businessman and philanthropist gave his first gift of $25 million to the university.
His most recent donation of $1 million will establish the Dean’s Innovation Fund at the William S. Richardson School of Law.
“The customers of law firms are businesses and other types of organizations. These organizations are always innovating and changing, and lawyers have to keep up with it,” Shidler said in a statement. “Since the law school is what gives birth to those, it’s appropriate that they reflect the innovations that are happening in the real world and can use some of that to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the delivery of their instruction.”
Shidler made a similar $1 million donation to HPR in July to fund innovation and community-building initiatives.
The new fund at the law school will add a new curriculum to educate future lawyers on innovative business practices — including cryptocurrency, big data and cybersecurity.
The funds will also be used for outreach to students from disadvantaged communities.
