Lifelong devotion to Hurricanes Athletics lays groundwork for magnificent gift.

A Saturday telecast of a collegiate sporting event was the spark that lit Ted Schwartz’s burning passion for the University of Miami’s intercollegiate athletic program. While watching UM’s football team battle an opponent on the gridiron, Schwartz became enamored with everything about the squad, from its iconic Orange Bowl home stadium to the distinctive U logo emblazoned on the players’ white helmets.

That was back in the early 1970s, and in the ensuing decades, Schwartz’s love for Hurricanes football—and all sports UM—never waned. In fact, so deep is his love for UM Athletics that Schwartz and his son, Todd, have made a generous lead gift to help build a 34,000-square-foot facility that will elevate the storied program back to national prominence.

When it opens, the Schwartz Center for Athletic Excellence will include enhanced football facilities, a 13,000-square-foot academic center, and a renovated and expanded training center.

“From our faculty to our coaches, trainers, and advisors—our number one priority is to nurture students’ intellectual growth and their social, physical, and emotional well-being,” President Donna E. Shalala said at the multipurpose facility’s December 2011 groundbreaking ceremony. “The Theodore G. Schwartz and Todd G. Schwartz Center for Athletic Excellence will provide the essential resources to accomplish this.”

The event was held on the very practice fields where the foundations for all five of UM’s national championships in football were laid.

“Our family believes in giving opportunities to young people who are willing to set high standards.”

Theodore “Ted” Schwartz

The gift is not the family’s first philanthropic act to benefit the University. Eight years ago, the University opened the M. Christine Schwartz Center for Nursing and Health Studies, a facility made possible by a generous lead gift from M. Christine and Ted Schwartz.

The more recent gift, explains Ted, also embodies the family’s ideals. “Our family believes in giving opportunities to young people who wouldn’t otherwise have those opportunities and who are willing to set high standards and have the courage and conviction to back them up,” he said. “That’s what has always appealed to me about this wonderful place.

“When I was growing up, the University of Miami was, for me, a combination of Muhammad Ali and Rocky Marciano. They were confident. They set the highest standards. And they backed them up.”