The Vanderbilt University School of Law has received a $10 million gift from alumnus and VU Board of Trust member Justin Ishbia.
According to a release, Ishbia is founder and managing partner of Shore Capital Partners, a private equity firm with offices in Chicago and Nashville. He also is a member of the Vanderbilt Law School Board of Advisors who in 2015 established the Justin R. Ishbia Scholarship to provide financial support for VU law school students. Ishbia received his juris doctorate degree from Vanderbilt in 2004.
The $10 million gift will support “key strategic priorities" within the law school and "strengthen its position as one of the nation’s premier institutions for legal scholarship,” the release notes. Chris Guthrie serves as the law school's dean.
Justin Ishbia
Ishbia, who was elected to the VU Board of Trust in 2021, also is a trustee of Rush University Medical Center, a board member of Chicago’s Museum of Science and Industry and a member of the Young Presidents’ Organization. A member of the Illinois State Bar Association and a certified public accountant, Ishbia resides in Chicago with his family.
“We are deeply grateful for Justin Ishbia’s leadership, generosity and enduring commitment to Vanderbilt University and Vanderbilt Law School,” Vanderbilt Chancellor Daniel Diermeier said in the release. “His contributions to our community as a student, engaged alumnus and now university trustee will have an enduring impact on our great institution.”
Ishbia said Vanderbilt has made a “transformative impact” on his life.
“With this latest gift, I want to enable and expand upon the types of experiences I’ve had at the law school and on the Vanderbilt campus for future generations of students and scholars,” he said.
In addition to his philanthropic support of VU, Ishbia has been a guest lecturer at the Owen Graduate School of Management, delivering the keynote address at the annual Vanderbilt Entrepreneurship Conference twice. He also volunteers as a career adviser and an interviewer for prospective VU law students.
“My dad is a lawyer and was my inspiration for going to Vanderbilt Law School, and my mom was a public schoolteacher for over 27 years,” Ishbia said. “They taught me the importance of education, helping others and giving back to the community.”