For Business School Naming Rights, the Price Is Only Going Up

B-school glory comes at a cost.

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By Janet Lorin

May 11, 2017 at 4:01 AM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

This article is part of the May 15, 2017 issue of businessweek.

Northwestern University’s business school became the J.L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management in 1979, thanks to a $10 million gift from the John L. and Helen Kellogg Foundation. The Kelloggs got a bargain. The school is approaching 40 years with their name attached, even though its home has undergone a transformation and received far larger gifts. Contributions from the family foundation of alumnus and former Motorola Chief Executive Officer Chris Galvin and the estate of James Russell, among others, supported Kellogg’s new 415,000-square-foot home, which press reports peg at $250 million. In the decades since that 1979 gift, the cost of B-school naming rights has gone way up.

Kellogg’s Global Hub, which opened in late March, features a floating conference room and views of Lake Michigan.