A Birmingham businessman and Auburn University trustee has pledged the biggest donation in the university's history.



Raymond Harbert, who serves as president pro tem of the board of trustees, pledged $40 million to the school today.



In response, the board voted unanimously to rename the Auburn's college of business the Raymond J. Harbert College of Business.



Harbert abstained from the vote.



"This is a historic day for the College of Business," said Dean Bill Hardgrave. "We are proud to forevermore carry the Harbert name as a symbol of quality, hard work, entrepreneurial spirit, dedication and the Auburn spirit."



The donation is limited to the college of business, said university spokesman Mike Clardy. Harbert said nearly all of the money would go into a foundation that will be used to hire professors for the college of business.



None of the money will be used for brick-and-mortar projects, Hardgrave said.



University President Jay Gogue said the donation would allow the university to transform the college of business, putting it on par with the top schools of business in the country.



Harbert, a 1982 graduate of Auburn, serves as chairman and CEO of Harbert Management Corporation, a Birmingham-based independent investment firm founded in 1993.



His pledge to the school comes in the form of a challenge. Harbert will donate $25 million to the university. If the school can raise another $15 million, he'll match it for a total of $55 million for the university.



His donation displaces the previous record donation of $25 million made by former board member Samuel Ginn, whom the school's College of Engineering is named after.



"I am interested in helping the university become the best it can be," Harbert said in a statement. "One of the critical elements to making that happen is capital. I have been blessed with success in my business endeavors, which in turn allows me to make that capital available as an investment in the College of Business' future.



"To say it a different way, 'To whom much is given, much is required.'"



Harbert also serves as a member of the President's Advisory Board of the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

