Ohio Wesleyan Launches Conrades School of Engineering After More Than $17M in Gifts

Ohio Wesleyan University announced the creation of the Conrades School of Engineering, an endowed engineering school made possible by more than $17 million in alumni donations. University leaders described the initiative as the most significant academic expansion in Ohio Wesleyan’s 183-year history and said the new school will combine the strengths of a liberal arts education with rigorous technical training.

The Conrades School is named for alumni George Conrades and Patricia "Patsy" Belt Conrades, whose $13 million contribution anchors the effort. Additional major commitments include $2 million from Doug Dittrick Jr. and Gina Boesch, and $2 million from alumni Gordon Smith and Helen Crider Smith.

Until now, Ohio Wesleyan offered a pre-engineering pathway rather than its own engineering degrees. That interdisciplinary pathway allows students to earn an Ohio Wesleyan Bachelor of Arts—often majoring in physics with a pre-engineering option, or in pre-chemical, pre-computer or biomedical engineering—and then complete a professional engineering degree at a partner institution.

OWU maintains formal transfer agreements with four engineering schools where students traditionally finish their studies after three years at Ohio Wesleyan: the California Institute of Technology, Case Western Reserve University, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Washington University in St. Louis. The new Conrades School will complement and expand that pathway by offering on-campus, degree-granting engineering programs.

Industry Partnerships and Student Opportunities

University leaders said they developed the school in close consultation with regional employers to ensure graduates meet workforce needs. Vertiv, a Westerville-based maker of data-center cooling and power-distribution equipment, will give Ohio Wesleyan engineering students priority consideration for summer internships. Ansys, through Synopsys’ academic offerings, will provide structural finite-element analysis and fluid simulation software to support teaching and student projects.

“The Conrades School of Engineering does more than create a stronger Ohio Wesleyan,” President Matt vandenBerg said in a prepared statement. “It creates a stronger world. Our purpose isn’t self-improvement but the public good — an act of boldness, kindness, and innovation that reflects who we are.”

Jason Hall, CEO of the Columbus Partnership, praised the university’s move to help address Central Ohio’s growing demand for engineers as manufacturing and technology employers expand in the region. “A liberal arts university looking at the future of this economy and saying, ‘We are going to be part of shaping it,’” Hall said, calling the initiative an example of taking responsibility for preparing the next generation of problem-solvers.

Timeline and Goals

Ohio Wesleyan plans to welcome its first cohort of mechanical engineering majors in fall 2027. The school’s stated goal is to produce engineers who are both technically adept and broadly educated—graduates equipped to tackle regional and global challenges with technical skills, critical thinking, and ethical grounding.

George Conrades credited two former Ohio Wesleyan professors, Robert Wilson and Howard Maxwell, for guiding him toward a career in engineering and technology. Conrades later held leadership roles at IBM, Bolt Beranek and Newman, Akamai Technologies, and Oracle, and said his experience reflects the long-term impact of faculty mentorship.

Reported by Sheridan Hendrix.