Work Begins on New Home for University of New Haven's College of Business

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The University of New Haven has had a ceremonial groundbreaking for a new, cutting-edge on-campus home for its Pompea College of Business.

This state-of-the-art four-story, 50,000-square-foot facility will be constructed at the southeast entrance to the university’s main campus at the corner of Campbell Avenue and Ruden Street, a major campus crossroads, creating a new gateway and highly visible “front door” for the university.

The building is being funded entirely through donor philanthropy, including principal gifts from longtime benefactors Dennis Martin '81 ’05 Hon., and his wife Barbara, along with Charles Pompea '71, '90 EMBA, '06 Hon. and his wife, Tamera, who have contributed transformational donations totaling more than $25 million, according to university officials..

In honor of the Martins’ generosity, the building will be named Martin Family Hall, home of the Pompea College of Business, celebrating Dennis’ and his family’s dedication to supporting the university’s commitment to inspiring bold ideas, meaningful careers, and better-than-ready graduates.

In July, the Martins committed an additional $5 million challenge gift to inspire additional support for the University. Their commitment will be fulfilled once fellow donors collectively match the $5 million gift. The University is nearing that goal.

The Pompea family has long been among the University’s most dedicated philanthropic partners and is the namesake of the Pompea College of Business. A former chair of the University’s Board of Governors, Charles Pompea continues to serve as a member of the Board.

“This pioneering facility is both an investment in the future of business education and a powerful testament to our donors’ strong belief in the university, our vision, and our students’ unlimited potential,” said Jens Frederiksen, president of the University of New Haven.

“We are charting the future of business education. This new facility will be a dynamic hub for innovation and experiential learning, delivering an unparallelled return on investment for our students and preparing them to excel as leaders in a rapidly evolving global economy.”

The new building will feature world-class learning environments where classroom knowledge is transformed into professional practice, including:

“These transformational spaces reflect our belief that the best way to prepare students for extraordinary careers is through meaningful, real-world experience,” said Pompea College of Business Dean Brian Kench. “By combining cutting-edge technology with experiential learning, we will continue to position our graduates to excel as well as advance our exceptional post-graduation outcome rates.”

 The architect of the building is Grace Designs from St. Louis, MO, and the contractor is Consigli, a leading company that has worked on projects from Maine to the Caribbean.

 Consigli reports that the project is creating 35 jobs, including 25 that will be filled by residents of West Haven.

The University of New Haven, founded in 1920, is a private university whose mission is to prepare students to excel and lead purposeful and fulfilling lives in a global society. The university offers more than 150 undergraduate and graduate programs and has been recognized for academic excellence nationally and internationally. In addition to its main campus in West Haven, the university has campuses in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and Tuscany, Italy.