Shaping a Legacy

Rockefeller Foundation

The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health would not exist without philanthropy. The University itself was founded in 1876 with a $7 million bequest from its eponymous benefactor. A $267,000 grant from the Rockefeller Foundation established the School in 1916. A $6 million gift from the foundation for endowment and a building followed in 1922, allowing the School’s founder, William Henry Welch, to hire an elite faculty for the world’s first school of public health. Subsequent donations have helped shape the School’s global contributions to research and education. On April 23, 2001, the school was renamed in honor of Michael R. Bloomberg, recognizing his commitment to the School and the entire University.