Miami set to get a new CMU campus, thanks to $3 billion donation by Citadel founder Ken Griffin — the largest-ever gift in US higher education history

Miami is set to get a new Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) campus, thanks to a $2 billion donation from Citadel founder and CEO Ken Griffin. The donation also includes another $1 billion for CMU's Pittsburgh campus. Griffin's $3 billion gift is said to be the largest-ever indiviual gift toward higher education as well as Griffin’s largest-ever gift. As per Carnegie Mellon University, CMU Miami is expected to start enrolling students from 2028. The new campus, CMU said, is "designed to pioneer a model for higher education built for the next era of American innovation".

"CMU Miami will be a new campus organized around societal challenges, designed to prepare future leaders for a rapidly changing world while accelerating research and discovery in areas of critical importance to society," the university in a statement said.

Of the $1 billion, $500 million will go into its top-ranked School of Computer Science, which will be renamed the Kenneth C. Griffin School of Computer Science. The rest $500 is meant for the "university’s highest priorities", CMU added.


Griffin, who is also the founder of Carnegie Mellon University (CMU), hoped the investments will be able to "attract exceptional talent, advance transformative research and prepare graduates to solve consequential problems and lead with impact". Griffin will also join Carnegie Mellon’s Board of Trustees, further solidifying his dedication to the university.

What to know about CMU Miami

As per the statement, CMU Miami is designed to move beyond the traditional hub-and-spoke model of university expansion.

"Rather than simply extending individual programs or research activities into a new city, CMU Miami will develop into a comprehensive university campus where education and research are equally central to the mission, built to the same standards of academic excellence that define CMU," CMU added in the statement.

At launch, CMU Miami will focus on grand challenge areas spanning human health and biological discovery; national security and strategic capabilities; energy and climate resilience; and advanced manufacturing and industrial transformation. The campus will also serve as a platform for curricular innovation, new approaches to teaching and hands-on learning.

Once complete, the state-of-the-art campus will support more than 3,500 undergraduate, master’s and PhD students, nearly 300 faculty and over 600 staff members. Construction is slated to begin in 2027.

Located on more than 35 acres in Wynwood — in the heart of Miami — the campus will support a comprehensive student experience and an interdisciplinary environment designed for learning, research and collaboration. Plans include space for industry research labs and venture studios, creating opportunities for students, faculty, industry and community partners to work alongside one another. The campus itself will serve as a living laboratory for new ideas, while creating opportunities for collaboration across CMU’s locations.