Milwaukee entrepreneur and UWM alum Jerry Jendusa has given $1 million to the Lubar Center for Entrepreneurship.
The gift will support an entrepreneur-in-residence program that will allow students to learn from people who have started their own companies.
“Providing students with access to entrepreneurs creates a dynamic, learning-rich environment,” Jendusa said. “Big entrepreneurial ideas start as a dream, and I want to encourage students to chase their dreams.”
Jendusa graduated from the UWM Lubar School of Business in 1989 and started EMTEQ, an aerospace products maker, just five years later. The company had grown to 650 employees and over $100 million in sales by the time he sold it in 2014.
Jendusa is co-founder and CEO of STUCK LLC, a company that helps entrepreneurs find success by breaking through financial strains or organizational roadblocks.
The Lubar Center for Entrepreneurship was established last year with a $10 million lead gift from Marianne and Sheldon Lubar. A new building is being designed to house this program as well as a new welcome center.
“I am deeply grateful to Jerry for his support of entrepreneurship at UWM,” Chancellor Mark A. Mone said. “A strong culture of innovation is essential to the vibrancy of Milwaukee and Wisconsin, and leaders like Jerry are helping us create a program that will produce the next generation of entrepreneurs.”
