Ellison Reneges on $115-Million Harvard Pledge
June 28, 2006 | Read Time: 1 minute
Lawrence J. Ellison, who heads the Oracle Corporation, will not fulfill his $115-million pledge to Harvard University because the university’s president at the time of the pledge, Lawrence H. Summers, has since resigned, reports the Associated Press.
The pledge was the 10th-largest gift announced in 2005, according to The Chronicle of Philanthropy’s annual survey of America’s biggest donors. It would have been the largest single gift in Harvard’s history, and would have been used to create a global-health foundation bearing Mr. Ellison’s name.
Oracle spokesman Bob Wynne said Mr. Ellison felt Mr. Summers was too integral to the planning of the health center for it to succeed without his involvement. He says Mr. Ellison plans to make a donation to another institution instead. (A paid subscription is required to view the Chronicle article.)
