The University of Cambridge announces plans to establish the Rokos School of Government, made possible by a commitment of £190 million from investor Chris Rokos.
This is believed to be the biggest individual donation made to a British university in modern times.
The Rokos School of Government aims to prepare future leaders to be able to navigate the ever-more-challenging demands of both domestic and international politics in a new and complex world of great structural change.
Mr Rokos has agreed to make an initial gift of £130 million, plus further gifts of up to £60 million, the subsequent amounts to be matched by Cambridge University. The University will also be contributing the undeveloped land in the Cambridge West Innovation District on which the School will be built.
Chris Rokos said: “I was fortunate to be given the opportunity of an education which transformed my life, and I would like to give something back to Britain. My hope is that, in time, the influence of the Rokos School of Government across the world becomes an important element of that soft power which has been a great asset to the UK.”
Fundamental to the School’s operation will be its direct access to Cambridge’s renowned expertise in technology and the sciences, together with disciplines more usually associated with the social sciences, arts and humanities.
Professor Deborah Prentice, Vice-Chancellor, University of Cambridge said: “Tackling the enormous challenges facing our world requires radical new ways of thinking and approaches to leadership. Cambridge, with its strengths across all disciplines and its convening power, is uniquely positioned to drive this innovation.
“Thanks to Chris’ generous support, the Rokos School of Government will become a place where leaders and governments – both current and future – together with experts from across our institution generate the insights and solutions needed to respond to our rapidly changing world.”
Image: Courtesy of Cambridge University. Photographs of Chris Rokos and Professor Deborah Prentice by Nick Saffell
