MSOE is embarking on a new $125 million comprehensive campaign, in part, to raise funds for a four-story, 97,00 square-foot academic building for flexible labs, modern classrooms, robotics, AI, and much more.

Milwaukee School of Engineering (MSOE) has announced the “Next Bold Step: The Campaign to Accelerate Innovation.” The $125 million comprehensive campaign will directly support the university’s mission to prepare leaders to solve the technical challenges of the twenty-first century, including its goal of becoming the national leader in the education of applied artificial intelligence.

At the heart of the campaign are philanthropic efforts to support MSOE’s new Robert D. Kern Engineering Innovation Center, which will promote innovative modes of education and support the growing needs of MSOE’s students.

The $76.5 million, four-story, 97,000-square-foot academic building will have flexible labs, modern classrooms, workshops focused on robotics and AI, an outdoor sustainability lab, and public spaces that support collaborative learning across all disciplines, with a focus on integrating AI and Machine Learning into all of MSOE’s engineering programs.

A key feature of the new building will be MSOE’s new Center for Applied Artificial Intelligence Education, which will guide initiatives across campus, attract top faculty talent, and support area businesses. The center will allow faculty, staff, and students to rethink what’s possible and incorporate AI into their multidisciplinary programs and projects.

To further MSOE’s commitment to becoming the national leader in applied AI education, the university will establish the Dwight and Dian Diercks School of Advanced Computing. The school will allow MSOE to weave AI and machine learning into degree programs across the university, and to support the exponential opportunities that advanced computing and computational sciences make possible in every industry.

MSOE will partner with donors to establish significant endowments in support of student scholarships, faculty, and research. The school is named to recognize the incredible support of MSOE from Dwight and Dian Diercks. Mr. Diercks is a 1990 graduate of MSOE and a current Regent.

Additional campaign priorities include scholarships and funds supporting faculty and academic programs, student support programs, and operational excellence.