Hicks, a businessman with a UT government degree, doesn't have a background in social work, but he said he's always been focused on supporting institutions and causes that directly help people. He settled on the school after studying where he felt he could make the most difference.

"I think we have a great society, but in every social system, parts of it break from time to time and the social workers are there to pick up the pieces, whether in the hospitals or recovery centers, assisted living facilities and the prisons," Hicks said in an interview.

"It's not the most glamorous of jobs. I don't know that I could do it myself, but I have deep admiration for those who can."

The gift, announced publicly Wednesday, is believed to be among the largest ever to a public university's social work school, according to UT.