$55 million gift from Chang K. Park anchors a new vision of student wellness at technological university

When Chang K. Park first arrived at Michigan Technological University in the early 1970s, he came as a young student from South Korea intent on mastering engineering in a foreign land. What he found was more than a demanding academic environment.

Michigan Tech became a second home—one that challenged him intellectually, grounded him personally, and quietly shaped the way he would later think about leadership, responsibility, and giving back. More than five decades later, Park is returning that formative gift with a transformational commitment of his own.

With a landmark $55 million donation, Michigan Technological University has announced plans to establish the Chang K. Park Student Wellness Center, a centralized, purpose-built facility designed to unify wellness services and programs that for years have existed across campus without a single, consistent home.

The new center, expected to be completed in 2028, will be constructed near the core of student life on the current site of Lot 11, between the Memorial Union Building and the Administrative Building—close to residence halls and administrative offices alike.

University leaders describe the gift as a defining moment in the institution’s long-term master plan, one that elevates wellness from a supporting function to a central pillar of student success.

For years, Michigan Tech has provided counseling, health services, prevention initiatives, and wellness programming in a variety of locations—sometimes in academic buildings, sometimes in residence halls, sometimes in offices students had to seek out.

“Or maybe it’s in a classroom in Fisher Hall, or maybe it’s in one of the residence halls,” said Laura Bulleit, vice president of student affairs. “Students don’t have a consistent place to go to receive that kind of programming that we’re trying to offer. We really think this is going to help us reach more students because they’re going to know where to go.”

The Student Wellness Center is designed to solve that problem by offering clarity, visibility, and access—three elements increasingly critical in an era when student mental health, physical well-being, and emotional resilience are under unprecedented strain.

By bringing services together in one welcoming, purpose-built environment, the university aims to make seeking support a normal, visible part of campus life rather than a fragmented or hidden experience.

Richard Koubek, president of Michigan Technological University, sees the center as a philosophical as well as physical statement.

“Student success isn’t just in the classroom,” he said. “It’s student success as an individual—preparing yourself for the world to come. What’s particularly impactful is that this focus is going to be instantiated in the physical facility now in a way that, at most universities, it doesn’t happen.”

That emphasis resonates deeply with Park’s own experience. A 1973 graduate with degrees in electrical engineering and engineering administration, Park credits Michigan Tech not only with providing technical rigor, but with offering the structure and support that allowed him to thrive as an international student far from home.

After graduation, he went on to found URC Automation Company, building it into a globally respected enterprise in industrial automation and manufacturing solutions. His career reflects the instincts of a systems thinker—someone who believes that strong outcomes depend on well-designed foundations.

Those same instincts now shape his philanthropy. Park has become a widely respected benefactor known for investing in enduring institutional infrastructure rather than short-term solutions.

The wellness center reflects that philosophy: a long-term commitment to the often-invisible systems that sustain student life and determine whether young people flourish or falter during some of the most formative years of their lives.

At a time when colleges and universities nationwide are confronting rising mental health needs and a broader reckoning over what it means to educate the “whole student,” Park’s gift arrives with uncommon clarity.

Wellness, in this vision, is not an add-on. It is essential. It deserves permanence, visibility, and architectural presence.

Construction of the Chang K. Park Student Wellness Center is expected to conclude in 2028, but its impact will extend far beyond its opening day. For generations of students who may never meet Park, the building will quietly embody his belief that education is about more than knowledge—it is about balance, resilience, and readiness for life beyond campus.

In giving $55 million to create a home for student wellness, Chang K. Park is honoring the institution that once served as his own anchor. In doing so, he is ensuring that Michigan Technological University continues to be not just a place of learning, but a place where students are supported as whole human beings—prepared not only to succeed, but to endure and to lead.