The Lubar Entrepreneurship Center (LEC) is beginning a series of features on donors to the LEC. The donors to the LEC support our mission of bringing entrepreneurship and innovation to both the UW-Milwaukee campus, as well as the entire Milwaukee community. Many of our donors are entrepreneurs themselves, who know firsthand how important a resource like the LEC can be to one’s entrepreneurial journey.
Our first featured donor is David Lubar. His parents Sheldon and Marianne Lubar gave the lead gift to UWM to establish an endowment supporting programs and events, operations, faculty, and staff of the new Lubar Entrepreneurship Center. In 2020, David and Madeleine Lubar also gave a major gift to the LEC to provide further support for the Center.
David Lubar is the president and CEO of Lubar & Co., a multi-generational, family-owned private investment company in Milwaukee. David Lubar joined the company in 1983 and has helped start and build many small and mid-sized companies since then.
David Lubar received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Bowdoin College and a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Minnesota.
Over the years, David has served on the Boards of many local profit and not-for-profit organizations including Northwestern Mutual Life, BMO Financial Corp, Greater Milwaukee Committee, Milwaukee Brewers Baseball Club, Greater Milwaukee Foundation, Froedtert Health, Medical College of Wisconsin, UWM Foundation, and UWM Lubar School of Business Advisory Council.
Q&A With David Lubar:
Q: Why is it important to you, and your family, to support entrepreneurship at UWM?
A: Entrepreneurship is typically thought of as the effort or process of starting and building a company that provides a new and improved product or service to the market. The vision of the Lubar Entrepreneurship Center is to help entrepreneurs build successful companies, but equally importantly to also teach and encourage entrepreneurial thinking and behavior in all UWM students. Entrepreneurial thinking encompasses life-long learning, problem-solving, innovation and exploration, collaboration and communication, and other traits. Whether you are working for others, as most of us are, or self-employed, those who possess these valuable skills will be rewarded over time.
The Lubar Entrepreneurship Center is committed to coordinating and cooperating with all of the Schools at UWM to provide all students an opportunity to learn entrepreneurial thinking which will enhance their likelihood of a successful career, benefit local employers and positively impact the vitality and quality of life in our community and state.
Q: What advice would you give to student entrepreneurs?
A: While there is no single blueprint for success, my advice to young adults in their 20’s and 30’s building a business or their career is to believe in yourself, set lofty goals, and follow your passions. However, no one achieves success all by themself, so my second piece of advice is to seek out mentors, don’t hesitate to ask questions, do your research so you can make thoughtful, informed decisions, and be willing to work hard.