UCI Reports Record $24.7 Million in Donations

UC Irvine received a record-breaking $24.7 million in private donations during the 1987-88 budget year that ended in July, officials announced Wednesday.

That figure is the largest ever for the university, representing a $3.2-million increase over the previous year, said Cynthia Morris, a UC Irvine spokeswoman.

Private gifts and grants represented $19.3 million of the total, Morris said. Another $5.4 million came in research contracts from private organizations.

Corporations donated $8.5 million of the gifts and grants. Individual alumni, parents of students and other community members gave $4.4 million, officials said.

Foundation support provided an additional $3.1 million and other sources, including campus-related organizations, generated $3.3 million.

‘Aware of Quality’

John R. Miltner, vice chancellor for university advancement, attributed the increase in donations to UC Irvine’s broadening reputation for academic excellence.

“As more and more companies, foundations and individuals become aware of the quality of our faculty, research and academic programs, we’re seeing more than a continued increase in financial support to the campus,” Miltner said in a prepared statement. “We’re also experiencing a marked increase in partnership with the private sector.

“These partnerships extend beyond financial support to involvement in university programs and activities, from participation in affiliate groups and advisory councils to joint research.”

“The primary reason for our continued fund-raising success is the excellence of our faculty members and their research, which our development office helps to support and promote within the community,” UCI Chancellor Jack W. Peltason said in a statement.

Five new endowed chairs--bringing the university’s total to 12--were established this past fiscal year with the corporate and private contributions and pledges, Morris said.

Largest Endowed Chairs

Among the largest of the endowed chairs were the Arnold and Mabel Beckman Chair in Laser Biomedicine; the Walter B. Gerken Chair in Enterprise and Society established in the Graduate School of Management, and the Gold Star Chair in Radiological Sciences, provided by a Seoul, Korea, firm that gave the university $600,000, Morris said.