Unstoppable Campaign
Carol and Frank Morsani Invest in the Future of Healthcare
| USF Health
USF President Judy Genshaft shares a laugh with Carol and Frank Morsani at the press announcement.
Photo by Eric Younghans | USF Health
Frank Morsani worked his way through the car business, blending a passion for change and a zeal for innovation to become one of the top-selling car dealers in the country and a civic and philanthropic leader.
Along the way, his wife Carol stood by his side — dedicating herself to raising their two daughters and making a difference in the community.
Together they succeeded.
And it was together in December they made their largest philanthropic gift to date — $20 million to construct a new college of medicine at USF — the largest gift from an individual ever received by the university. The gift brings the Morsani's total giving to USF Health to $37 million, and to the university as a whole, $43 million.
In honor of their philanthropic commitment, the university renamed its medical college the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine.
"This is the most fantastic special announcement ever," USF President Judy Genshaft told the Board of Trustees. "Carol and Frank Morsani have given us a remarkable opportunity to shape healthcare in the Tampa Bay region and beyond."
The gift will create a dramatic new education center at USF Health, focusing on new ways to teach the team-based care of the future. The new building will host a teaching clinic that will be designed as a national model for free community care in a dynamic learning environment.
And it will create the Stephen K. Klasko Institute for an Optimistic Future in Healthcare — an institute named for current CEO of USF Health, and dean of the medical college, Dr. Stephen K. Klasko. The institute will be home to some of the college's most innovative projects, including the PaperFree Florida electronic records initiative.
"What has inspired us about this university is the commitment to excellence," Frank Morsani says. "It's not just words. Everybody who's observed this university knows it's real."
No one knows that better than Klasko.
"Our vision for the Morsani College of Medicine could not be more clear or dramatic," he says. "We intend to be the leaders of the revolution that will transform the future of healthcare education and healthcare delivery…Not by changing the existing reality, but by creating a new model that makes the old model obsolete."
Dr. Leslie W. Miller, chair of USF Cardiovascular Sciences, greets the Morsanis.
Photo by Eric Younghans | USF Health
The Morsani's most recent gift builds on the couple's decades-long commitment to volunteerism and philanthropic leadership. Their gifts have helped build major institutions in Tampa. Frank Morsani, a former chairman of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, has been chair of the USF Foundation and a reason for the success of the USF: Unstoppable campaign. Carol Morsani has served on numerous boards, including the boards of the Tampa Museum of Art and H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center. In 2004, she helped found the USF Women in Leadership and Philanthropy program and was named honorary chair.
But while the Morsanis champion civic and philanthropic leadership, they believe in personal modesty.
"We were very reluctant about the naming," Frank Morsani says. "That's not why we do things. We do it because it's the right thing to do. We feel tremendously honored and humbled for this to happen."
There's another reason, too. The Morsanis hope their gift will serve as a call to action.
"We hope this encourages others to say, 'Let's look at what we're going to do with our resources.'"