Miller Hall wing named for MBA graduate
The graduate wing of Alan B. Miller Hall is now officially the Edward T. Tokar Graduate Wing.
The designation recognizes a historic gift to William & Mary's Raymond A. Mason School of Business from Tokar, MBA '71, to enhance and sustain the MBA program. It is the largest gift to the program from an MBA graduate.
"I am eternally indebted to William & Mary for the wonderful opportunities and experiences" Tokar said. "My MBA had a significant impact on a business career that endures to this day. The 50th Anniversary celebration of the MBA program was a milestone that deserved special tribute."
The naming was made official with the installation of bronze lettering and at the entrance to the wing and a glass plaque in the hallway. In addition, a portrait of Tokar will be installed in summer 2018.
Tokar retired as the senior managing director of investments at Beacon Trust Co. He formerly served as CEO of Allied Capital Management and vice president of investment at Honeywell International. Over the years, his generous gifts to the Mason School have supported an MBA speaker series as well as the Edward T. Tokar Family Classroom on the first floor of Miller Hall.
"We are grateful for the support that Ed and his family have shown to the Mason School, and particularly to our MBA program. Ed has been a driving force in our efforts to engage and re-engage our MBA alumni." said Mason School Dean Larry Pulley. "We are pleased to announce this gift and the naming of our graduate wing in Ed's honor last summer at the 50th anniversary of the MBA program. We are delighted now that the official recognition is in place."
More than 600 people from eight countries and 40 states returned to campus June 2 - 3 to take part in activities surrounding the 50th anniversary MBA celebration. It was the largest alumni gathering in the business school's history.
"We now have over 6,750 MBA alumni living lives of principled achievement and making a difference for good in the world," Pulley told the crowd at a formal dinner in the Sunken Garden on the final night of the celebration. "It has been a grand 50-year run thus far, and we are poised for even greater achievement in the future. We have become nimble, entrepreneurial and creative among business schools - and a catalyst for innovation."
William & Mary MBA alumni are invited back to campus May 18 - 19 for the 2018 MBA Alumni Weekend.
Recently, the Mason School was one of only a few MBA programs ranked in the top 10 in multiple categories of the Princeton Review's 2018 Best Business Schools rankings. The rankings including second in the Best MBA Professors category, up from fourth in the 2017 rankings.
Mason also ranked fourth as a Family Friendly business school - one with an environment that makes students with families feel welcome. It ranked eighth in the Most Competitive category, measuring academic rigor and the quality of classmates. In addition, Mason ranked ninth in the Green category, which assesses how programs prepare their students to address environmental, sustainability and social responsibility issues.
"Our faculty and staff are truly committed to providing our students with the best MBA experience possible," said Ken White, Associate Dean for MBA & Executive Programs. "With the generous support of alumni such as Mr. Tokar, we will deliver on that commitment throughout the next 50 years."
