The University of Maryland has announced a $15 million gift from alumnus and former Chicago Bulls executive Stephen M. Schanwald ’77 to help build a new golf performance center and expand the university’s sports management program.
The gift will be divided between Maryland Athletics and the Stephen M. Schanwald Sports Management Program in the Robert H. Smith School of Business, according to the university. In recognition of the commitment, the planned golf facility will carry Schanwald’s name, while a wing of Van Munching Hall will be named the Stephen M. Schanwald Gateway for Smith.
The new commitment brings Schanwald’s minimum giving tied to the University of Maryland’s Forward campaign to $33 million. In 2024, he committed $18 million, including $10 million for Maryland Athletics and $8 million to endow the sports management program and support scholarships.
UMD’s Forward campaign has a $2.5 billion fundraising goal. As of Aug. 17, the campaign reported $1.162 billion raised, or 46% of its goal.
“Steve Schanwald’s background gives him a unique perspective on how sports connect us to each other and to institutions,” UMD President Darryll J. Pines said. “His generous gift promises to benefit everything we do at the University of Maryland, from advancing incisive scholarship to building a community of proud and committed Terp students, faculty, staff and alumni.”
A major portion of the latest gift will support construction of an approximately 5,000-square-foot golf performance center intended primarily for Maryland’s men’s and women’s golf teams.
UMD officials aim to finalize the facility’s design in 2027. Plans call for indoor and outdoor hitting bays, a dynamic putting lab, high-speed cameras and sensors capable of measuring data such as club speed, angle and force at contact. Doppler radar technology is expected to track ball flight, distance and spin rate.
“The golf performance center will allow us to recruit even greater players, help them reach their full potential and compete for Big Ten and national championships,” Schanwald said.
The investment comes as Maryland men’s golf has recently recorded a notable individual achievement. Emil Riegger ’27 became the program’s first All-American since 1994 during the 2026 season, according to UMD.
Jim Smith, the Barry P. Gossett Director of Athletics, said the facility would affect both player development and recruiting.
“This extraordinary gift will transform the experience for our men’s and women’s golf student-athletes by providing a world-class training environment while strengthening our ability to recruit, develop and compete at the highest level,” Smith said. “Steve’s vision and generosity will have a lasting impact on our golf programs and on generations of Terps to come.”
The other part of Schanwald’s new commitment will expand the sports management program bearing his name at the Smith School.
The program is currently a 12-credit interdisciplinary undergraduate experience rather than a major or minor. It combines specialized coursework with consulting projects, networking, industry engagement and other experiential opportunities. It is open to eligible UMD undergraduates regardless of major and draws faculty and resources from the Smith School, the Department of Kinesiology in the School of Public Health, the Shirley Povich Center for Sports Journalism and Maryland Athletics.
University officials say the additional endowment support will allow the program to develop both a minor and a major, while hiring additional faculty and staff and expanding its national profile.
Schanwald also participates directly in the program. UMD says he organizes guest lectures by sports industry figures and helps arrange student trips to the NFL, NBA and Major League Baseball headquarters in New York.
“His transformative involvement extends beyond his generous gift,” Smith School Dean Prabhudev Konana said. “He offers his time and extensive industry knowledge to ensure students in the program are prepared to become leaders and innovators in the business of sports.”
The sports management program launched in 2023 and was formally dedicated in Schanwald’s name in October 2025. It began with 25 students and now offers a structured pathway for students interested in careers throughout the sports industry.
Schanwald’s own sports business career began with an unpaid internship in Maryland Athletics while he was a UMD student. After graduating in 1977, he worked at the U.S. Air Force Academy, Pittsburgh Pirates and Chicago White Sox before joining the Chicago Bulls in 1987.
He spent 28 years with the Bulls, eventually serving as executive vice president of business operations. UMD credits him with helping reshape the team’s game-day entertainment, promotions, community relations and other business operations during and beyond the Michael Jordan era. He retired in 2015.
The university announced the latest gift Aug. 12 as part of Forward: The University of Maryland Campaign for the Fearless, which is intended to support student access, research and university-wide initiatives.
The university has not announced a construction completion date for the golf performance center.
