Penn State Receives $5 Million Donation for Beaver Stadium Renovation

Penn State has announced more than $65 million in contributions for the Beaver Stadium renovation project.

A rendering of the proposed $700 million renovation of Penn State's Beaver Stadium, which is scheduled to be completed in 2027. / Courtesy Penn State Athletics

Penn State announced a new $5 million donation to the Beaver Stadium renovation, one that will secure naming rights to a planned stadium feature. Beaver Stadium's primary club on the West sideline will be called the Marzano Club, named for donors Frank and Jennifer Marzano. Their commitment brings to more than $65 million the total of Founders Club donations to the planned $700 million Beaver Stadium renovation.

According to a Penn State news release, the Marzano Club is one of the new suite spaces that constructed as part of Beaver Stadium's West side renovation, which will begin in early 2025. Penn State said that the club will be a "hub of campus and community activities on non-game days" and "one of the premier event spaces in all of Pennsylvania."

“We are incredibly appreciative of Frank and Jenn for their generous gift to our Beaver Stadium Revitalization project,” Penn State Athletic Director Patrick Kraft said in a statement. "The Marzanos are a Penn State family through and through and have strong roots in our Happy Valley community. They understand the importance of Beaver Stadium and the impact it will have on our student-athletes, alumni and fans as one of the premier venue for years to come.”

Frank Marzano, a 1994 Penn State graduate and financial advisor, founded GM Advisory Group in 2004 and sold it to Wealthspire Advisors in 2023. The Marzanos have five children, two who are Penn State graduates and another who is a freshman at Penn State.

“The way we raise our kids and Frank’s professional journey have all been shaped by a profound respect for discipline, commitment, hard work and competition — all of which we have learned through our experiences at Penn State,” Jennifer Marzano said in a statement.

Penn State has announced more than $65 million in donations to the Beaver Stadium renovation, several of which include stadium naming rights. The new Welcome Center will be named for former trustee Ira Lubert, who donated $10 million, and the West Tower will be named for Anthony Misitano, whose initial $25 million donation kicked off the Beaver Stadium capital campaign.

The Beaver Stadium renovation will add about 47,000 square feet of event space to the facility, with the Welcome Center serving as a key feature. The venue, Penn State President Neeli Bendapudi has said, will create a "front-door experience" for the university and act as an introductory space for new and prospective students. Penn State said that the Welcome Center will play a role in the admissions process and also will expand Beaver Stadium's abiltiy to host year-round events.

"There is a need, when prospective student athletes come to campus, to have a central location, and so that will be built into the stadium," Kraft said in a May interview. "... It will be a beautiful facility for our admissions team to welcome prospective students. We also will have a club level that will be used for event space, which we desperately need in athletics, and I know that community needs more spaces that can hold large-scale events. We really want to make sure that we provide an opportunity to use the building far more than what we're using it right now."

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