Prominent homebuilder donates $1M to New College for baseball field

Prominent Manatee and Sarasota homebuilder and philanthropist Carlos Beruff has donated $1 million to New College of Florida for the school’s baseball field and complex. 

The gift, from Carlos and wife Janelle Beruff, will go toward what will be called the Beruff Family Field of Dreams, according to a late Friday afternoon statement from New College. The field will be at the corner of U.S. 41 and University Parkway, just past the entrance to the Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport and, the release states, will be one “of the most visible athletic landmarks in the area.” 

“Carlos Beruff has long been a champion for the people of Sarasota and Manatee counties, and his belief in the transformative power of education and athletics aligns perfectly with the mission of New College,” New College President Richard Corcoran says in the release. “This field will be more than just a home for our baseball team; it will be a legacy space where the values of determination, intellectual curiosity and academic excellence intersect with athletic achievement. 

Beruff has held several visible roles in the Sarasota-Bradeton community, including several from gubernatorial appointments. He was on the boards of State College of Florida in Bradenton, the Sarasota-Manatee Airport Authority and the Southwest Florida Water Management District. A Republican, in 2016 Beruff ran to unseat Sen. Marco Rubio in a primary. In 2017, then-Florida Gov. Rick Scott appointed Beruf to chair the Florida Constitution Revision Commission.

The son of Cuban refugees, Beurff was born in Miami and has supported education causes and talked publicly about overcoming his poor childhood. He founded Medallion Home in 1984.

“My family is forever grateful for the opportunities that literally Make America Great for anyone who works hard and believes in the American dream,” Beruff says in the statement. “We believe having a world-class liberal arts institution in our own backyard elevates the quality of life for everyone while providing opportunities for our leaders of tomorrow.

“This is not the first time I have given to New College, nor will it be my last,” he adds. “Many of our business and political leaders would not have had the opportunity to get a college education without athletic scholarships, so we believe that expanding New College to offer those [athletic scholarships] will help solidify its future. This field represents new possibilities and a commitment to the American Dream — not only for the student-athletes that will play on it but also for everyone who gets to experience it.”

New College launched its intercollegiate athletics program — the Mighty Banyans — in 2023. Over the past 20 months, the school has established 12 teams, joined the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and earned membership in the Sun Conference. The baseball team, which currently plays its home games at IMG Academy in Bradenton, won 20 games in its inaugural season.

The Beruff Family Field of Dreams will provide a permanent home for the team, the college says. Architectural designs for the ballpark are currently in progress. A construction timeline will be announced in 2025.