A pledge of $2.13 million from the Kislak Family Foundation will continue efforts to support Monmouth University students pursuing careers in real estate as well as help build a permanent, on campus home – of sorts – for The Boss.

The foundation announced the funding for the Kislak Real Estate Institute and the Bruce Springsteen Archives and Center for American Music April 3.

The endeavors will split the contribution nearly 50-50. Continued support of its namesake real estate center at Monmouth will put $1 million toward the need-based Kislak Family Scholarship. The award is open to undergraduates in pursuit of a business degree with a real estate concentration. Additionally, $125,000 will help fund the annual Academic Challenge, an intercollegiate real estate competition hosted by the Institute.

Meanwhile, the remaining $1 million will support construction of a 30,000-square-foot building to house the Bruce Springsteen Archives and Center for American Music, related exhibition galleries, and a 230-seat theater.  The $45 million project was announced last October. At the time, the school said that a campaign to raise construction funds was underway.

“We are immensely grateful for the Kislak Family Foundation’s generous pledge and continued confidence in our mission,” said Monmouth University President Patrick Leahy. “This gift will bolster our mission to deliver an exceptional education to students today, while also providing foundational support for the future of the Bruce Springsteen Archives and Center for American Music.

“The foundation’s support for both scholarship funding, and for preserving and sharing the diverse tapestry of American music, resonates deeply with our institutional values of excellence, access, and social mobility,” Leahy added.

Long-standing support

The Kislak family’s support of Monmouth University dates to 2006. At that time, an inaugural gift helped establish the Kislak Real Estate Institute within the Leon Hess Business School. According to KFF, it and the university established the first credit-bearing academic real estate program in New Jersey. Then it was one of 65 such programs nationwide; now it’s still just one of 100.

In 2022, a $2 million pledge from KFF helped establish a permanent endowed directorship for the Institute.

“The Kislak family business was founded in New Jersey in 1906, and I am proud of the Foundation’s continued support of Monmouth University and its impactful work,” said Jason Pucci, CEO of The Kislak Co. Inc. “Jay Kislak forged a living legacy by helping to develop students who will become the next generation of real estate professionals and it is exciting to be a part of preserving Bruce Springsteen’s important legacy and the history of American music.”

Launched in 2017, in recent years the Springsteen Archives has added a new executive director and introduced its American Music Honors event. Later this month, the 2024 iteration will honor Dion DiMucci, Mavis Staples, Jackson Browne and John Mellencamp.