St. Mary's University has received a $1 million donation to fund scholarships for international students from Carlos Alvarez, owner of The Gambrinus Company, the nation’s sixth largest craft brewing company.

The Carlos and Malú International Student Endowed Scholarship Fund will “help recruit international students who would not otherwise be able to afford higher education in the United States,” the university announced Tuesday.

Alvarez, who made his name by importing Corona beer from Mexico to the United States in the early 1980s, has made several donations to support international students and first-generation college students at St. Mary's University, University of the Incarnate Word and Our Lady of the Lake, among other philanthropic efforts. He received an honorary doctorate from St. Mary’s in 2015.

“For students who have the drive and qualifications, but who lack the resources to study abroad in the U.S., this significant donation will define a path toward a first-class St. Mary’s education,” the school’s president, Thomas Mengler, said in a statement. “We are grateful to Carlos and Malú Alvarez for giving St. Mary’s the ability to share excellent educational opportunities with these future leaders and to enrich the studies of all of our students with global perspectives.”

International students make up 8 percent of the St. Mary’s student body.

Top hits: Get San Antonio Express-News stories sent directly to your inbox

Alvarez, who attended the Monterrey Institute of Technology in Monterrey, Mexico, moved to San Antonio in 1986 and founded The Gambrinus Company. Based on sales, it was the sixth-largest craft brewing company in 2018, according to the Brewers Association. He has supported international students at St. Mary’s since 2005, he said in a statement.

“As a result of St. Mary’s fine stewardship of my previous gifts and their success in attracting international students, I was compelled to renew and increase my commitment to their efforts,” Alvarez said. “This latest gift, in the form of an endowment, will provide St. Mary’s with a reliable and consistent source of funds with which to provide opportunities for international students at St. Mary’s for years to come.”

On ExpressNews.com: St. Mary’s receives $1 million donation for science building

Alvarez’s contribution is the second million-dollar gift received by the university in 2019, following a donation in honor of longtime chemistry professor Brother William “Bill” Chewning that was announced in Feburary. That gift will support the school’s Science, Engineering and Technology building.

The university is aiming to raise $130 million through its ongoing Defining Moment Comprehensive Campaign, which is the largest fundraising effort in its history.

LTeitz@express-news.net