Investor and U.S. immigrant Len Blavatnik made a major gift to Oxford University in 2010 to establish a brand new School of Government at the nearly 1,000-year-old college. The primary aim of his $117 million donation is to prepare students from all over the world to be more productive leaders in public service. The first students enrolled in 2012, and the master’s class of 2014 included 75 students from 48 different countries. The school places a heavy emphasis on development economics, and almost instantly became one of the most selective graduate programs at Oxford. A dramatic new headquarters building on the Oxford campus debuted in 2015.
- Information on Blavatnik, bsg.ox.ac.uk/about/leonard-blavatnik