$1 million gift to Loyola will strengthen opportunities for accounting faculty and students
| By Molly Robey
Jalal Soroosh, Ph.D., inaugural Patrick and Deborah Allender Endowed Department Chair for Accounting, Patrick Allender, and Bobby Waldrup, Ph.D., accounting professor and associate dean
The department of accounting at Loyola University Maryland has received a $1 million gift from Patrick Allender, ’68, and his wife, Deborah. In addition to establishing an endowed chair in accounting, this gift will enhance Loyola’s accounting department’s reputation as a premier school in the Baltimore area to offer accounting degrees both at undergraduate and graduate levels. This gift is dedicated to support the department of accounting’s initiatives to offer a robust master’s in accounting.
The gift will fund departmental graduate student assistantships and support innovative development of accounting graduate programs and professional development for faculty.
“Our accounting program is already exceptional. The Allenders’ gift will elevate the program further and help us continue to attract talented students,” said Kathleen A. Getz, Ph.D., dean of the Sellinger School of Business and Management. “On behalf of our faculty and students, I extend our deepest gratitude to Patrick and Deborah for their generous support and for their belief in Loyola.”
The inaugural Patrick and Deborah Allender Endowed Department Chair for Accounting is Jalal Soroosh, Ph.D., professor of accounting, who was officially designated as the chair at a ceremony on Sept., 24, 2018, on the Evergreen campus.
Allender, who received his bachelor’s degree in accounting from Loyola, served as the executive vice president, chief financial officer, and secretary of Danaher Corporation before his retirement in 2007. He currently holds numerous positions as a member of the Board of Directors for the Brady Corporation, Colfax Corporation, and Diebold Nixdorf Inc. He is also the chairman of the finance committee for the board of trustees at Washington College.
Allender, who recalls as an undergraduate working hard in his military science courses and working 40 hours a week alongside one of his accounting professors, decided to make this investment in Loyola’s future after several return visits to campus. After nearly 25 years away from Loyola, he was impressed by the immense growth and opportunities for accounting students and the faculty’s passion for their profession.
“I’m very happy to make this gift, and I know it will be put to good use,” Allender said. “My wife, Debbie, and I want to see the master’s in accounting program reach even greater success in the years ahead.”