Philanthropists Celebrated for Commitment to Bentley Community

On Friday evening of Falcon Weekend 2026, Bentley leadership gathered with donors at the annual Presidential Reception and Great Benefactors Dinner to express deep appreciation for their generosity and dedication to the university.

“Each of you has made Bentley stronger,” said Bentley President E. LaBrent Chrite, addressing a crowd of more than 100 supporters at the Presidential Reception that included Great Benefactors, President’s Council members, trustees and trustee emeriti, alumni and friends. “You believe in what Bentley is today, and you’ve invested in what we can become.”

The celebration included the induction of three longtime supporters — Trustee David Giunta ’87, Wendy Giunta ’88 and Trustee Sue O’Connell ’90 — into the Great Benefactors Society, which recognizes individuals whose cumulative giving has totaled $1 million or more.

As President Chrite presented a Great Benefactors plaque to David and Wendy Giunta, he noted the couple has been supporting Bentley for 40 years. “Their support reflects a deep appreciation for the many dimensions of a Bentley education, from the enduring impact of the Bentley Fund to the promise of innovation and entrepreneurship,” said President Chrite.

Sue O’Connell, our other Great Benefactor inductee, has demonstrated her leadership as a longstanding trustee and her support for critical priorities, including the Adamian Academic Center, scholarships and programs that invest in equal opportunities for women at Bentley.

A recurring theme throughout the evening was the momentum behind the Technology, Innovation and Entrepreneurship strategic initiative, which is equipping Bentley students with the durable, transferable skills needed to navigate change and lead in an evolving business landscape.

In remarks delivered at the Presidential Reception, Liz Paushter, executive director of Bentley’s Badavas Center for Innovation in Teaching and Learning, emphasized that both campus-wide academic innovation and the reimagined Adamian Academic Center are essential to advancing the goals of Bentley’s Technology, Innovation and Entrepreneurship strategy.

“We are creating environments where students can grapple with real challenges, work on meaningful projects and learn in ways that mirror the world they will be entering,” Paushter said.

Academic innovation is flourishing across campus as faculty develop new teaching strategies that create real-world, immersive and interdisciplinary experiences, Paushter said. Meanwhile, construction at the Adamian Academic Center remains on schedule to be completed in the fall of 2027. Its technology-enabled spaces will support design and testing, collaboration, coaching and problem solving — further advancing Bentley’s vision for experiential learning.

Prior to the evening celebration, Bentley supporters had an opportunity to tour the Adamian building, where they could see spaces such as the Futures Lab taking shape. They also had the option of interacting with students at the Innovation Showcase, which featured student-led presentations on the Trading Room, which is part of the Hughey Financial Services Center, the Bentley Entrepreneur Society, Bentley Artificial Intelligence Society and the Bentley Blockchain Association.

At the Great Benefactors Dinner, first-generation scholarship recipient Stella Case ’28 shared how Bentley transformed her from a first-year student with limited financial knowledge into the current president of the Bentley Investment Group, in part because of her hands-on experience in the Trading Room at the Hughey Center for Financial Services. This experience prepared her for an internship at Dynatrace last summer and helped her land an internship at Fidelity for the summer of 2027.

Case recalled how, in one interview at Fidelity, the hiring manager was intrigued by her philosophy and law minors. “We talked about ethics, decision-making and how to approach complex problems from different perspectives,” Case said.

The experience taught her a powerful lesson. “Success isn’t just about technical knowledge,” Case said. “It’s also about critical thinking, communication and understanding how to navigate difficult questions and work with others.”

As the student speaker at the Presidential Reception, Ryan Ogren ’27 illustrated the power of Bentley’s hands-on approach to learning. Through the E-Hub Incubator Program, which helps student teams transform ideas into viable ventures through mentorship, resources and funding, he and two classmates developed RightRun, an app for runners. Their startup earned $10,000 in seed funding, enabling them to further develop their product and bring it to market.

Ogren also completed three internships at Deloitte, an experience that is ultimately leading to a full-time position at the firm after graduation. “The greatest gift I’ll take with me from Bentley will be the unique opportunities I have experienced here alongside the best people,” Ogren said. “I stand here today as a testament to your generosity and fidelity to our university.”