John Doerr, managing partner at venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, and his wife Ann Doerr have granted Rice University the largest gift the institution has ever received.
Rice, home to the world’s number one ranked university incubator and largest student startup competition, will use Doerr’s $50m gift to construct a leadership institute. The Doerr Institute for New Leaders will be available to all of Rice’s student body, and will promote a mixture of traditional and next-generation techniques taught alongside a four year degree to provide coaching and mentorship on leadership through the classroom and hands on experience. The institute will be headed up by retired brigadier general Tom Kolditz, who brings with him leadership training experience from Yale University and US military training facility West Point.
Both John and Ann Doerr are Rice alumni, having studied their bachelor’s and master’s degrees in electric engineering at the university. The gift was made through the pair’s private family foundation.
Speaking on the donation, John Doerr said: “Millennials want to see the big picture and their role in it, get frequent feedback and be empowered — not micromanaged. Now more than ever, the pressing problems of our nation and world need great teams and great leaders. Ideas are easy; executing those ideas with a well-led team is paramount. New leaders must be inclusive, self-aware and great listeners who are attuned to the needs of their teams.”
Ann Doerr added: “Throughout our lives and on any given day we are both leaders and followers. The Doerr Institute’s goal is to train each student to become an effective leader. A true leader needs the skills to evaluate the goal, understand its validity, succinctly articulate it and then lead with deep compassion, moral integrity and empathy.”
