Breaking Ground
McCombs Dean Lillian Mills with Miriam and Jim Mulva
In fall of 2028, the new 17-floor James J. and Miriam B. Mulva Hall will host its first undergraduate business classes on the Forty Acres.
A visionary lead gift from the Mulvas — and crucial support from a cohort of early investors committed to the promise of a top-tier business education — are making this dream a reality.
To the north, the group could see the Tower standing proud; toward the east, a patchwork of burnt-orange tiled roofs pointed the way to Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. Soon, viewers gazing out from the spot where the Mulvas stood on that day will have a grander view with even further sightlines.
Mulva Hall, a gleaming new undergraduate business school building named in honor of the couple’s visionary philanthropic gift, will soon occupy the site. This new landmark-in-the-making will bring 17 stories and 373,000 square feet of state-of-the-art learning facilities to the southwest corner of The University of Texas at Austin, transforming our physical and academic landscape for generations to come.
How to Start a Chain Reaction
The Mulvas know the importance of the UT experience — their burnt-orange roots run deep. Jim attended the University as a transfer student on a Navy ROTC scholarship, determined to earn an MBA from UT before deployment. He completed the two-year master’s program in just one year. “All I did was study,” he says, chuckling.
After completing his service to the U.S. Navy in 1973, he started as a financial management trainee with Phillips Petroleum, ascending to chief financial officer, president and chief executive officer of ConocoPhillips after the two energy companies merged. Amplifying the couple’s impact, Miriam has long championed local initiatives related to the Catholic Church, community,and the arts.
The Mulvas have a long history of giving at UT. Their donations to Dell Medical School, Cockrell School of Engineering and ROTC in the College of Liberal Arts have immeasurably enhanced UT’s campus, programs, and student life. In 2013, the Mulvas made the historic decision to invest $60 million in capital projects at UT — $20 million to the Cockrell School of Engineering and $40 million to the McCombs School of Business.
“A building makes a statement: ‘What happens here is important.’”
Their original vision was to refurbish the College of Business Administration/Graduate School of Business (CBA/GSB) buildings — facilities that have successfully housed business faculty offices and classrooms for half a century. However, when University leadership met with the Mulvas to discuss the scope of this once-in-a-lifetime gift, a new and larger goal began to take shape.
Rather than refurbish the existing complex, the Mulvas’ gift could help inspire a wave of philanthropy that would power a new state-of-the-art undergraduate-focused facility on the southwest corner of campus. In addition to providing a vital new 21st-century learning environment, this new building would help McCombs complete its dreamt-of “business neighborhood” — a geographical and cultural center pillared by the AT&T Hotel and Conference Center, Rowling Hall and the new Mulva Hall.
“This munificent gift set off a transformative chain reaction among McCombs’ friends,” says Mills, who began to lead the project when she took on the role of dean in 2020. “Through their generosity, the Mulvas shifted the school’s aspirations for generations to come.”
For the Mulvas, the need was always clear: “If you’re going to be one of the best business schools in the world, you’re going to have to stay competitive with your facilities,” Jim says. “It’s not that facilities are more important than faculty and students, but they are key to attracting the highest-quality faculty and students.” Miriam adds, “A building makes a statement: ‘What happens here is important.’”
Investment in Impact
Creating nurturing environments that invite people to learn and grow matters deeply to the Mulvas. “This isn’t just a building,” Jim says. “It’s an investment in education — an investment in youth.”
To learn about Mulva Hall’s key supporters, follow construction progress and invest in this transformational project at UT Austin, visit mulvahall.mccombs.utexas.edu.
Changing the world
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