Scott Price, a second-generation Florida State University College of Business alumnus who launched a prominent and award-winning global cybersecurity company, has given back to the college with a $2.7 million gift.

Price, founder and CEO of Tampa-based A-LIGN, committed $2 million to create the Scott G. Price and Family Endowed Scholarship in Accounting, which funds the Scott G. Price Accounting Scholars Program. He also committed $700,000—in addition to a previous $300,000 gift—to name the Scott G. Price and Family Forum Stairs, a signature connector and seating area in Legacy Hall, the future home of the College of Business.

“FSU has been a part of my life and an identity for who I am since I was a child,” Price said. “When you get to a point in your life where you’re able to give back to something that gave you so much, you give back.”

FSU President Richard McCullough expressed appreciation for Price’s generosity.

“We genuinely thank Scott for his support, loyalty and vision and for his love of Florida State University,” McCullough said. “His gift will help shape the College of Business for generations to come.”

Michael Hartline, dean of the College of Business, lauded Price’s gift as “a remarkable investment from a genuine FSU family member and friend.”

Hartline said the Price Accounting Scholars Program will allow the college to recruit the best and brightest accounting students to the college. The Department of Accounting already boasts the nation’s No. 21-ranked program among public universities, according to U.S. News and World Report.

Price completed bachelor’s and master’s degrees in accounting during the same year, 1997, long before the university established combined pathways that give academically talented undergraduate students the opportunity to get a head start on a graduate degree. 

The Price Accounting Scholars Program includes the Scott G. Price Accounting Pathway Scholarships, an endowment that will fund nine credit hours to high-performing accounting undergraduates that can be applied toward requirements for both their bachelor’s degree and FSU’s Master of Accounting, or MAcc. It also includes the Scott G. Price MAcc Scholarships, an endowment that will fund eight Price Scholars annually and provide about 50% of their program tuition cost.

“I feel this transformational gift can provide a real shot in the arm to the accounting department,” Price said. “I’m excited to see how this funding will continue to elevate our national ranking.”

Likewise, he touted Legacy Hall as a facility that will attract the nation’s top students and faculty members and help the college continue to climb the rankings of the top U.S. business schools.