Computer screens at The Johnson Investment Counsel Investment Lab at UC’s new Carl H. Lindner College of Business show the exterior of the building. Photo provided by University of Cincinnati
By Matt Koesters
UC Public Information Officer
UC‘s Carl H. Lindner College of Business has garnered attention around the country in recent years. U.S. News & World Report now regards several of the college’s degree programs as among the best in the country, and it tops the Bloomberg Businessweek rankings of public MBA programs in Ohio and the Midwest. The national acclaim earned by Lindner is cited as a contributing factor to multiple consecutive years of record-breaking enrollment at UC.
Since 2010, graduate enrollment at Lindner has increased 200%, while undergraduate enrollment has increased 50%. But as Lindner shattered records for applications, enrollment and student quality, it became increasingly obvious that the college needed more space.
That changed at the beginning of the 2019-20 academic year with the opening of the new, $120 million Carl H. Lindner Hall. Located adjacent to the college’s former home, the spacious, 225,000-square-foot building — funded in part by an $11 million gift from the Lindner family and American Financial Group, the largest in the college’s history — will accommodate Lindner’s needs, both now and in the future. A grand opening ceremony was September 19.
“This stunning addition to our campus trans- forms what we are able to offer our students, faculty, alumni and business partners,” says Dean Marianne Lewis. “Our faculty and staff are always exploring ways to reinvent the student experience, and I’m excited to see how they will take advantage of the numerous opportunities Lindner’s new home unlocks.”
The building is designed to encourage collaboration, both inside and outside of the classroom. Even the largest space, a 245-seat lecture hall, makes working together in groups easy for students thanks to staggered rows of seating.
The building also has five research labs, including the Johnson Investment Counsel Investment Lab. Named for the Cincinnati firm founded by longtime Lindner finance professor Tim Johnson and funded by a $5 million gift from Johnson and his wife, Janet, the lab is well-appointed with state-of-the-art investment hardware and software. A digital stock ticker lines the uppermost portion of the lab’s walls, and students will have access to real-time stock market data using Bloomberg Terminals.
When the Danish firm Henning Larsen architects was selected to design the new Lindner Hall, the firm’s principal partner, Louis Becker, promised a building that “reflects Scandinavian design traditions of putting people, space and daylight first.”
Lindner, a Cincinnati billionaire philanthropist and businessman, once said, “My dream is to put UC’s business college on the map as one of the finest in the nation.” The college was already well on its way to making that dream come true; the new building gives it a home fitting of the reputation.