Apple exec Dan Riccio gifts $50 million to UMass engineering programs

On October 30, the University of Massachusetts Amherst held a dedication ceremony renaming the school’s engineering program to The Daniel J. Riccio Jr. College of Engineering. The renaming follows Riccio’s very large donation of 50 million dollars to the program.

Riccio has personal ties to the university, as UMass is his alma mater; he received a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering in 1986 and a master’s in manufacturing in 2024. After Riccio’s time at UMass, he went on to work for Apple co-founder and former CEO Steve Jobs, staying at the tech company for 26 years.

Riccio played a significant role at Apple and was instrumental in the design and development of several world-renowned Apple products, such as the Macintosh computer (Mac), the iPhone, the iPad, and more. He retired from Apple in 2024.

While Riccio’s time at the university was mainly focused on engineering, he also participated in a table tennis class worth 2-credits. Hilariously, he said this class would come in handy when he almost failed a course and thought he’d need the extra credits.

Before attending UMass, Riccio graduated from Massachusetts’ Revere High School in 1980. He did not immediately have his sights set on going to university, waiting until after graduation to apply only to UMass. He selected engineering as his major because he had a cousin who was studying engineering at UMass Amherst at the time. 

During the polished, formal dedication ceremony, Riccio spoke about some of the major contributions he made during his time at Apple, to the interest of many eager students and faculty. The event ended with Riccio taking several questions from the audience and receiving a commemorative table tennis paddle before leaving to catch a flight.