Cornell’s rich tribute to alumnus Ratan Tata, its largest international donor

In a glowing tribute to its alumnus Ratan Tata, who died on Wednesday at 86, Cornell University said.

The renowned industrialist’s generosity and concern for others enabled research that improved the education and health of millions of people in India. Ratan Tata graduated from Cornell University, an Ivy League institution, where he earned his degree in architecture and structural engineering in 1962.

“Ratan Tata’s quiet demeanour and humility belied his international profile. His generosity and concern for others enabled research and scholarship that improved the education and health of millions of people in India and beyond, and extended Cornell’s global impact,” said Cornell University’s interim president Michael Kotlikoff.

A former Cornell trustee who became the university’s largest international donor, Ratan Tata was instrumental in setting up the Tata-Cornell Institute for Agriculture and Nutrition, a research initiative, in 2008. In 2017, a $50 million investment helped build the Tata Innovation Centre at Cornell’s Roosevelt Island campus in New York.

Moreover, the Tata Scholarship Fund offers scholarships to 20 Indian students studying at Cornell University. As of this academic year, 305 Tata scholarships have been awarded to 89 students from India.

When Ratan Tata initially joined the batch of 1959, he had enrolled to study mechanical engineering. However, he changed his major two years later to pursue architecture.

“When Ratan Tata graduated from Cornell with a degree in architecture, it would have been impossible to imagine the global impact his visionary leadership, philanthropy and commitment to humanity would go on to have — advancing education and research across many sectors,” said J Meejin Yoon, the dean of Cornell University College of Architecture, Art, and Planning.

In a documentary produced by his classmates during a reunion in 2009, Ratan Tata credited his architectural training in Cornell for some of his successes in business, including learning to approach problems creatively.

“The miles of tracing paper that all of us wasted on one concept after another did one thing: It taught us that we didn’t stick with one thing,” Tata said in the documentary. “We tried, and we tried, and we improved, and we reconceived what we had to do. It’s no different in business,” he further said.

In the documentary, Tata also discussed his love of flying, a hobby he pursued as a student. In fact, during his Cornell days, Tata once safely executed an emergency landing of a four-seater aircraft, which had several of his classmates onboard, after an engine failure.

“Ratan Tata has left an extraordinary legacy in India, across the world and at Cornell… We will remember his legacy of transformative giving to Cornell,” the university said.