Doug and Shelley McMillon, through the McMillon Family Foundation, have committed $10 million to establish the McMillon Innovation Studio Endowed Fund and the McMillon Innovation Studio Construction Fund at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville.
The gift permanently establishes the McMillon Innovation Studio within the Sam M. Walton College of Business. The McMillon Innovation Studio Endowed Fund will permanently support the studio’s operations, while the McMillon Innovation Studio Construction Fund will provide funding for a new home for the studio.
Founded in 2016 with support from Doug McMillon, president and CEO of Walmart Inc. of Bentonville, and his wife Shelley McMillon, the studio provides students with a collaborative space to prototype ideas and tackle business and social challenges. It aims to develop future leaders, entrepreneurs and innovators by cultivating their creative mindset and connecting them to mentorship and resources.
The McMillon family previously invested $2 million, with additional financial support from Kelly and Steve Barnes, Claude and Don Harris, and Sunny Gosain.
“Supporting the studio means supporting the next generation of innovators,” Doug McMillon said in a press release. “I believe the students working here today will be the founders, thinkers, and problem-solvers we’ll all depend on tomorrow.”
The press release stated that as technology evolves, the skills and capabilities associated with an innovative mindset have become more valuable to University of Arkansas students. In recent years, the studio has become a hub for students who seek to develop an innovative mindset.
“The McMillon Innovation Studio represents the very best of what a 21st-century business education should offer — hands-on, human-centered and future-focused,” Brent Williams, Dean of the Sam M. Walton College of Business, said in the release. “This generous gift from Doug and Shelley McMillon allows us to deepen our commitment to innovation and student success.”
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