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Francis Wayne Valley (March 28, 1914 – October 2, 1986) was an American
business Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or Trade, buying and selling Product (business), products (such as goods and Service (economics), services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for ...
man,
philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material ...
and
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
player. He attended
Oregon State University Oregon State University (OSU) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Corvallis, Oregon, United States. OSU offers more than 200 undergraduate degree programs and a variety of graduate and doctor ...
in the 1930s, where he was a starting
linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the line ...
and fullback on the
Oregon State Beavers The Oregon State Beavers are the sport, athletic teams that represent Oregon State University, located in Corvallis, Oregon. The Beavers compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I (NCAA Division I ...
football team, though he would ultimately graduate with a business degree from the
University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a Public university, public research university in Eugene, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1876, the university is organized into nine colleges and schools and offers 420 undergraduate and gra ...
due to OSU cutting his program of study. He would later go on to a successful career in the homebuilding industry, starting his first building business in the late 1940s. His businesses were based in the East Bay city of
San Leandro, California San Leandro (Spanish language, Spanish for "Leander of Seville, St. Leander") is a city in Alameda County, California, United States. It is located in the East Bay of the San Francisco Bay Area; between Oakland, California, Oakland to the northwe ...
, where he lived. He and his family later moved to Piedmont, California, in the late 1960s. Valley was one of the original owners (along with
Chet Soda Yster Charles "Chet" Soda (March 15, 1908 – March 12, 1989) was an American businessman who was the first general partner and general manager of the Oakland Raiders, an original franchise in the American Football League (AFL). Business Soda wa ...
, Donald Blessing and five other investors) of the
Oakland Raiders The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team based in Oakland, California, from its founding in 1960 to 1981, and again from 1995 to 2019 before Oakland Raiders relocation to Las Vegas, relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan ...
football team, and a founding member of the
American Football League The American Football League (AFL) was a major professional American football league that operated for ten seasons from 1960 until 1970, AFL–NFL merger, when it merged with the older National Football League (NFL), and became the American Foot ...
. He took control of the franchise in 1960 and served as the managing general partner of the team with Ed McGah until forced out of this role by
Al Davis Allen R. Davis (July 4, 1929 – October 8, 2011) was an American professional football executive and coach. He was the managing general partner, principal owner and ''de facto'' general manager of the National Football League (NFL) Oakland Rai ...
in 1972. Valley subsequently sold his stake in 1976. Along with his wife, Gladys L. Valley, they left the majority of their net worth to the Wayne and Gladys Valley Foundation, based in
Oakland, California Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, California, Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major We ...
. Valley died in 1986 and his wife continued operating the Foundation until her death in 1998. Their daughter Tamara A. Valley chairs the foundation and on September 15, 2003, the board of directors unanimously decided to wind down the foundation and distribute about $1 billion USD in assets by 2018. The foundation is a key donor to OSU, both academically and athletically; Valley Library, Valley Gymnastics Center, Valley Football Center, and the Gladys Valley Marine Studies Building at OSU are all named in their honor. The Valleys' foundation was also a major benefactor of the
University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...
, donating $64 million from 1989 to 2014. In 1989, the foundation gave Berkeley $15 million to support the renovation of the Valley Life Sciences Building, and in 2000, the foundation pledged another $25 million to advance biomedical and health sciences at the school. The foundation made a $10 million contribution to support the renovation of Berkeley's Bancroft Library in 2005, and it donated over $14 million during 2011 through 2014 to help fund the construction of the Li Ka Shing Center for Biomedical and Health Sciences. In 2005,
California State University, East Bay California State University, East Bay (Cal State East Bay, CSU East Bay, or CSUEB) is a public university in Hayward, California. The university is part of the California State University system and offers 136 undergraduate and 60 post-baccala ...
, in
Hayward, California Hayward is a city located in Alameda County, California, United States, in the East Bay subregion of the San Francisco Bay Area. With a population of 162,954 as of 2020, Hayward is the sixth largest city in the Bay Area, and the third largest in ...
, launched an aggressive construction project with the building of three new facilities: the Wayne and Gladys Valley Business and Technology Center (VBT), the Pioneer Heights student housing expansion and the University Union annex. The Wayne and Gladys Valley Business and Technology Center was dedicated on February 28, 2007, making it the first new academic building on the Hayward Campus in over 30 years. The building houses programs in business, technology management, engineering, multimedia, science and online degree programs.


See also

*
List of American Football League players This is a list of players who appeared in at least one regular season or postseason game in the American Football League (AFL). A * Bud Abell * Ray Abruzzese * Ken Adamson * Tom Addison * Ben Agajanian * Harold Akin * Ted Alflen * Bruce Alford ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Valley, F. Wayne 1914 births 1986 deaths Oregon State Beavers football players Oakland Raiders owners American Football League owners Sportspeople from the San Francisco Bay Area 20th-century American businesspeople