February 8, 2015 | Read Time: 1 minute
Amount donated in 2014: $110-million
Top beneficiary: Harvard University
Other notable gift: University of Oregon
Background: Mr. Ballmer is a retired chief executive of Microsoft and owns the Los Angeles Clippers basketball team.
The Ballmers committed about $60-million to Harvard University for 12 computer-science professorships. Mr. Ballmer is a 1997 graduate of Harvard.
The couple also pledged $50-million to Ms. Ballmer’s alma mater, the University of Oregon. Of that total, $25-million will endow PathwayOregon, a financial-aid program that also provides career and financial planning, mentoring, and other services to students. Twenty-million dollars will support an obesity-prevention and health-research program, and the remaining $5-million will go toward a national advertising campaign to publicize the university and its work.
Ms. Ballmer earned a bachelor of science degree in journalism from the university in 1984 and serves on the institution’s Board of Trustees.
