William Spears, founder and CEO of Dallas-based sustainability solutions firm Cenergistic, gave SMU its largest donation from a non-alum in its more than century-long history in 2022. The gift helped establish his namesake Institute for Entrepreneurial Leadership within the Cox School of Business, as well as the Spears Accelerator and other entrepreneur-supporting efforts.[Photo: SMU]
William Spears, founder and CEO of Dallas-based sustainability solutions firm Cenergistic, has given SMU the largest donation from a non-alum in its more than century-long history.
The gift will be used to set up the William S. Spears Institute for Entrepreneurial Leadership within the Cox School of Business, as well as the Spears Accelerator, to help get student- and faculty-formed businesses off the ground, and other entrepreneur-supporting efforts.