SEATTLE – Orin Smith, the former CEO of Starbucks Corp., has contributed $4.5 million toward the construction of a $130 million business school at the University of Washington.

Smith, a former UW student and current member of the school’s advisory board, says the school can’t become a truly great school “unless it has the right facilities to deliver the kind of business education needed in the 21st century.” With Smith’s contribution, the university has $96.5 million secured for the project, which may break ground as early as the summer of 2008.

A native of Chehalis, Smith, who graduated from the University of Washington, joined Starbucks in 1990. He is currently a board member of University of Washington Medicine, Conservation International and The Walt Disney Co. He also established an annual $25,000 scholarship for Starbucks employees in his name to attend the UW.