SDSU Alum Fred Pierce and his wife Christine, are leaving a $2.5-million legacy gift to SDSU.
SAN DIEGO, Calif. (July 6, 2015) — Fred Pierce never really left San Diego State University after he graduated in 1988 with degrees in finance and real estate. He has served on the boards of the SDSU Alumni Association, the Aztec Club, the College of Business Administration, and the Corky McMillin Center for Real Estate. Now he and his wife Christine are leaving a $2.5-million legacy gift to the university.
The gift will benefit the College of Business Administration, Aztec Athletics, the SDSU Alumni Association, Greek Life and student scholarships. In addition, the Pierces have made a five-year cash pledge to provide current funding for the areas that will become endowed when their planned gift is realized.
“We want our gift to demonstrate the diverse ways of giving to SDSU,” said Fred Pierce, founder of Pierce Education Properties, said. “We’re creating several alumni scholarships to underscore the value of this university’s alumni and volunteerism. We’re giving to the Parma Payne Goodall Alumni Center to support its longevity. We’re supporting Greek Life with scholarships for fraternity and sorority members who don’t qualify for federal grants, but whose families can’t afford to finance their education. We’re giving to entrepreneurship, finance and real estate scholarships, and we’re supporting athletics because it’s a gateway to a continuing relationship between the university and its alumni.”
It’s not surprising that Pierce’s Aztec enthusiasm rubbed off on his daughter, Peyton, who graduated from SDSU this year with a degree in theatre. Younger daughter, Riley, is a future Aztec, Pierce said.
A 1999 recipient of SDSU’s Monty Award for Outstanding Alumni, Pierce takes pride in his role in the redevelopment of the campus. He founded his company 20 years ago when he won a contract from the SDSU Foundation to serve as master developer of the SDSU Redevelopment Project, including the construction of Fraternity Row and the student residence Piedra del Sol.
Today, Pierce Education Properties acquires and manages existing, purpose-built student housing across the United States. The company ranks among the top 25 private owners of student housing in the country and is also among the top 10 buyers in the country since 2007. Pierce said he expects to grow the business to $1 billion in assets over the next five years.
The Pierces’ gift is part of The Campaign for SDSU, which has raised nearly $600 million of its $750 million goal. To date, approximately 24 percent of the funds raised through the campaign are planned gifts — like the gift from Fred and Christine Pierce — a total of about $145 million since 2007.
