Glenn Hutchins, the co-founder of Silver Lake Investments, had given Harvard University more than USD15 million to establish the Hutchins Center for African and African American Research. The donation was coursed through the Hutchins Family Foundation and is part of a larger USD30 million donation that was previously announced by the Cambridge, MA school.

Harvard, in a statement, said it was ramping up its efforts by announcing the start of a multiple year campaign to seek funding for teaching, research and construction projects. According to the statement, the new director of the Hutchins Center would be Professor Henry Louis Gates Jr, a tenured professor for African and African American studies in the school.

Gates, in a statement said, "Witht his unprecedented gift from the Hutchins Family Foundation, we secure our place as the pre-eminent site for research about the African diaspora int he academy."

Hutchins obtained his undergraduate degrees as well as his MBA and law degree from Harvard. Just last week, his investment firm with Dell CEO Michael Dell won shareholder approval to privatize computer maker Dell Inc in the largest leveraged recapitalization buyout in history at USD24.9 billion.