CLEVELAND, Ohio (Diya TV) — Monte and Usha Ahuja and the Ahuja Foundation have pledged $10 million to Cleveland State University for a broad redesign of its business programs, new technology-focused learning environments and expanded student support. The university says the gift will also help students gain practical experience through corporate partnerships.
President Laura Bloomberg announced the contribution during her State of the University address. The gift will cover undergraduate and graduate programs and help students study how artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies affect business. CSU has not published a dollar-by-dollar breakdown of the gift’s uses.
The university has renamed its business school the Ahuja College of Business and Entrepreneurship. The college serves about 2,200 undergraduate and graduate students. Its programs include 10 business administration majors and six graduate degrees, including a Doctor of Business Administration. CSU says the college holds separate accreditation for business and accounting from the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business.
The family also pledged $100,000 annually to recognize faculty research, teaching and mentorship. That recurring support is separate from the $10 million gift and will give the college a continuing source of funding for faculty excellence and innovation.
The donation builds on the Ahujas’ long relationship with CSU. Monte Ahuja earned his MBA there in 1975 and developed the idea for Transtar Industries while he was a student. He founded the transmission and drivetrain parts company that year and later served on CSU’s Board of Trustees from 1991 to 2000, including six years as chair. He now leads Beachwood-based MURA Holdings as CEO and chairman.
In 2011, Monte and Usha Ahuja gave CSU another $10 million. The university used that earlier gift for business scholarships and an endowed professorship, then named its business college the Monte Ahuja College of Business. Their Ahuja Endowed Scholarship Fund, established in 1992, has supported more than 1,500 students. In 2019, the family created an endowed chair in global business, now held by marketing professor Rama Jayanti.
CSU says the new gift makes the Ahuja family and foundation its largest lifetime donors. Bloomberg said the redesigned programs will prepare students for business roles shaped by technology. The university also plans to connect coursework with employers so students can build professional networks and gain work experience before graduation.
Ahuja said his time at CSU helped him build the business concept behind Transtar and that he wants future students to have similar opportunities. The university’s challenge will be turning the announced redesign into new courses, learning spaces and employer partnerships for students.
