Ohio State graduate and business school benefactor Max M. Fisher died with his family by his side on March 3, at his home in Franklin, Michigan, said Laura Bowers, a spokeswoman for the Fisher College of Business. He was 96.
“He was a strong supporter of Ohio State, as well as the Fisher College of Business,” she said.
Fisher was born in Pittsburgh to Russian immigrants on July 15, 1908. He attended OSU on a football scholarship and graduated in 1930 with a business administration degree, according to the business college memorial Web site for Fisher.
After graduation, he worked for his father’s oil business in Detroit and eventually turned it into one of the Midwest’s largest gas station chains, Aurora Gasoline Co., serving more then 700 Speedway gas stations, before selling it in 1959 to Marathon Oil Co.
Investing his money in stock and real estate made him one of the country’s wealthiest men, according to the site. He was also an accomplished adviser to several U.S. presidents and Israel’s prime ministers and was an active supporter of many charitable and civic organizations.
Joseph Alutto, dean of the business college, said Fisher was a leading spokesman for the need for an outstanding business college at OSU.
“His goal was to have a world-class business school,” he said.
Fisher said the university enriched his view of the world and he wanted students who came here to have that same view, Alutto said.
In 1993, Fisher made a $20 million donation to the business college, which was named in recognition of him, Alutto said.
The buildings that Fisher’s donation helped to construct allowed OSU to have the best faculty, students and staff, Alutto said. He would visit the university at least once a year to find out about the teachers that were being hired and inquire about graduate and undergraduate students.
He also acted as a catalyst to attract others to the university and donate more funding, he said.
“Max had one thing he always asked, and that was how he could help,” he said.
It didn’t matter who he dealt with, he just wanted to help out in any way he could, Alutto said.
Jim Miller, associate to the dean of the business school, said Fisher was a long-time adviser to the university and helped the college redesign the business school – not only in its buildings, but what it would take to make the school better as a whole.
Fisher used to say, “Buildings aren’t just enabling devices. It’s what you do inside that makes a difference,” Miller said.
Fisher epitomizes what OSU wants its students to be, Miller said. He was a global thinker, highly involved in politics and philanthropy and a successful businessman. He was a wonderful mentor for the students, Miller said.
“He came from modest means and became successful,” he said.
However, that was not enough. He really wanted to make a difference at OSU and in the world, Miller said.
According to the business college Web site, “Max Fisher once described his alma mater as a place that provided him with opportunities to take risks, shape his own future and develop a base to leave a significant impression on the world of business.”
