The University of San Diego has broken ground on a science, technology, engineering and mathematics center that will enable the school to expand its modest but growing offerings in these disciplines and better compete for STEM-oriented students.
The three-story facility has been named the Shiley STEM Initiative building in honor of philanthropist Darlene Marcos Shiley, one of the largest benefactors of USD, a private Catholic university located in San Diego’s Linda Vista neighborhood.
Shiley donated $75 million to USD in 2024 to ensure that the 70,000-square-foot center would be built. It is the largest gift in the school’s 77-year history.
USD established an undergraduate engineering program in 1987. That evolved into the Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering after Shiley made a $20 million donation in 2012.
The program also received a $10 million donation from Raffaela and John Belanich in 2018, mostly to expand engineering facilities.
USD is trying to establish itself as a STEM power in a county that is home to UC San Diego, which has about 10,000 engineering students, and San Diego State University, which has roughly 4,200 such students. USD has fewer than 1,000.