In 1999, David V. Uihlein, Sr., MSOE Regent Emeritus, and his wife, Margery,
donated $1 million to MSOE's School of Business to fund the Uihlein/Spitzer Endowed
Chair of Entrepreneurship.
Uihlein, a successful Milwaukee businessman and Cedarburg vintage race car collector and museum owner, established the scholarship to recognize the outstanding success of his friend, Dr. Robert Spitzer, during Spitzer's years as president of MSOE from 1977-1991. During these years, MSOE made great strides in quality and influence on the American business scene.
G. Woodrow Adkins, a businessman, entrepreneur, professor of entrepreneurial studies at MSOE and a member of the MSOE Board of Regents, was appointed as the first holder of the endowed chair in 2004.
Spitzer spent over 50 years in farming, business, government and education. He served as president of Murphy Products Co., Burlington, Wis., coordinated the Food for Peace Program for the U.S. State Department under President Gerald Ford, and authored the books No Need for Hunger and The American Challenge. He and his family continue to share a partnership in a 450-acre, 400-herd Wisconsin dairy farm at Dodgeville.
Uihlein has spent almost 60 years in business, starting as an apprentice with Joseph Schlitz Brewing Co. Recently, he auctioned eight of his classic autos from his Cedarburg race car museum. Uihlein and his one mechanic still do most of the work on 25 vintage race cars and autos.
The Uihleins have been major supporters of MSOE over the years. David
Uihlein, Sr. has been actively involved with MSOE since the early 70s. He
served as a MSOE Corporation member from 1971-79 and as a Regent of MSOE from
1979-91; he supported numerous scholarships, a machine shop for MSOE's Society
of Automotive Engineers, and contributed to the planning, design and purchase
of the Student Life and Campus
Center. Uihlein was
awarded an Honorary Doctor of Engineering degree from MSOE in 1993.
"Dave, like so many on MSOE's Board and other supporters, truly appreciates MSOE's excellent faculty, serious students and work-ready graduates," said Spitzer.
"David and I have known each other for a long time," Spitzer continued. "Our united goal was to select a faculty member who has strong, active ties to business and industry. It's appropriate that the Uihlein family name is on this endowed chair, since that name is symbolic with the great forces that built Wisconsin industry."
The Uihlein family has contributed much to business in Wisconsin. For three generations, the Uihleins were the family that made the beer that made Milwaukee famous--Schlitz. The Marcus Center for the Performing Arts' Uihlein Hall, The Schlitz Audubon Center, and the Erwin C. Uihlein Decorative Arts Gallery at the Milwaukee Public Museum all signal the Uihlein family's extensive impact on Milwaukee.