AMHERST – The University of Massachusetts Amherst College of Information and Computer Sciences (CICS) was the setting for the announcement of major future capital investment by the Baker-Polito Administration as well as a transformative gift from Board of Trustees Chair Rob Manning and his wife Donna for the university.

As a part of the recent and historic $50 million gift to UMass from the Mannings, $18 million of that will endow the soon to be newly named Robert and Donna Manning College of Information and Computer Sciences on the Amherst campus. While also being Chair of the Board of Trustees, Robert is also chairman of MFS Investment Management and Donna is retired since 2018 after a 35-year career as an oncology nurse at Boston Medical Center. Both are graduates of UMass Lowell.

“I have been very focused on the ethical application of new technologies, which both enhance and complicate our lives,” Robert Manning said. “The future of computing will cure diseases and solve some of the world’s greatest challenges … Donna and I are proud to invest in this incredibly important initiative.”

“I’m inspired by the unique way that the CICS researchers are applying the power of computer science to personal health monitoring disease forecasting, among other important areas,” Donna Manning said. “My hope is that our gift furthers the work already underway to leverage diverse talent, including women and underrepresented minorities, in solving the important problems facing our society.”

This allocation comes at the same time as the Baker administration announced a $75 million commitment to enhance and expand the different facilities of UMass. The state grant, which will be allocated over the course of multiple future capital plans, is backed by a $30 million commitment from the campus for the expanded physical footprint of the college.

While Baker has been hands on in working with UMass in growing their programs, he was unable to attend the Oct. 27 event due to power outages that struck portions of Eastern Massachusetts due to the Nor’easter.

“Our administration is excited about the future of the Rob and Donna Manning College of Information and Computer Sciences, because the research and educational programming at the college will help sustain the Commonwealth’s edge in these important sectors,” Baker said in a release. “We are pleased to commit important capital resources, which will be paired by this generous donation from the Manning family and investments from UMass, to help the college train and educate the next generation of computer and information science professionals and deliver on its mission of ‘Computing for the Common Good.’ We are grateful to Rob and Donna Manning for their commitment to UMass and our Commonwealth’s public higher education system.

The Mannings wanted to help specifically in areas that they thought would assist with the inequities that exist in society and try and aid in solving certain tech problems that were once never anticipated.

“While we were sitting around during the pandemic and watching millions of people being impacted by the coronavirus … we sat there and watched our net worth go up and we just felt horrible about it,” Rob Manning said. “We decided we wanted to make a transformational gift to the UMass system but target a program on each of the campus’s that were near and dear to our heart.”

While Robert Manning started off with a degree in management information systems and computer science, he has been in the field of finance and investments. Still, with his knowledge in computer sciences and the always growing importance of tech in the current world, he and his wife saw this as an opportunity to make a positive and lasting impact.

“I’ve not only seen the power of computers and what they can do to make companies more productive, make individuals more successful, I’ve also watched the destruction that can happen when automation eliminates jobs that are important to our society and creates a gap,” Robert Manning said. “We want to make sure as computers continue to get faster and more powerful, that people who are involved and engaged in the training, the computer scientists of the future, have a very strong moral and ethical compass when they make decisions as they’re working in software companies building products that are going to be used in society, that it doesn’t hurt or harm the most vulnerable populations.”

The Manning’s wanted to help specifically in areas that they thought would help with the inequities that exist in society.

The College of Information and Computer Sciences rank among the top 20 computer science programs in North America and boasts the No. 11 artificial intelligence (AI) program. The college has been committed to double the amount of undergraduate and graduate students in the school since 2018 and the gift and grant will help accelerate that goal. The work done in the school is so focused on some of the most demanding challenges of today, including ensuring equitable and safe AI, creating technologies that protect personal privacy, and safeguarding children from online predators.

The college has seen rapid growth of 320 percent in enrollment since 2010, and in recent years has been forced to turn away academically high-achieving students due to limited space and resources. A leader within the CICS and a vital part in the growth from a department to its own school within UMass is Chancellor Kumble Subbaswamy.

Over the last decade, Subbaswamy has seen the growth in the school that has made it one of the leaders in the country. CICS has become an “undisputed leader” in Subbaswamy’s eyes, and the school currently works with corporate partners in research collaboration such as MassMutual, Adobe, Amazon, Dell Technologies, Facebook, Google, IBM, Microsoft, Nissan and Oracle.

“Today is truly a momentous day for our campus,” Subbaswamy said. “Under [CICS] Dean [Laura] Haas’ leadership, the CICS community is untied around its unique trademark vision, Computing for the Common Good. We are committed to contributing to an inclusive and innovative society, and we know these gifts will help our institution harness technology’s power to drive this change.”

Haas has made diversity and inclusion a strong focus within the college and as the founding dean of the CICS, she has created a diversity office as well as introduced new programs to attract and retain diverse students, faculty and staff. Haas, who has over 35 years of experience at IBM as a research staff member and manager, has been hands on in the growth of the school and even has set a goal to grow the enrollment of women from 27 percent in 2021 to 40 percent by the end of the decade.

“We are incredibly grateful to the Mannings and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts for their support of our college. These investments will allow us to continue our college’s trajectory from a small research venter to a top-ranked college with more than 2,400 students today,” Haas said.

In attendance on behalf of the state was State Secretary for administration and finance Michael Heffernan, who spoke to the Manning family’s values and the excitement behind coming together for such a revolutionary project. Heffernan has worked closely as a manager-type with the University behind the scenes in helping guide them in the formation of this project.

“I’ve known Rob for more than three decades and let me tell you, the young man I knew in the 90’s, I am so not surprised that he and Donna are doing what they’re doing for UMass. It’s the kind of person he’s always been. I’ve got three kids in and around college age and I hope they grow up to be like Rob and Donna Manning, I really do,” Heffernan said. “Our administration is excited to be part of this generational commitment to programming here. The Manning gift will be a gamechanger in enhancing curriculum, attracting faculty, creating scholarship opportunities and so much more.”

UMass President Marty Meehan was also in attendance to celebrate the announcement for the school and give thanks to the Manning’s and all those involved in the project.

“This is a remarkable day,” Meehan said. “I can tell you from experience, Rob and Donna Manning do not invest this kind of money unless they know that they’re investing in excellence. They are extraordinary human beings. They articulate a vision that not only demonstrates their fundamental understanding of the programs they’re investing in, but they also articulate how this university can make society better in every aspect of people's lives.”