Chancellor Kim A. Wilcox and his wife, Diane Del Buono, have announced they will renew their support of the campus with a $100,000 pledge. This commitment follows a previous $100,000 gift the couple made in 2014 to create an endowed Chancellor’s Research Fellowship.
Recognizing the dynamic and challenging environment facing the nation and higher education today, the couple will annually direct their philanthropy toward areas of great need. A portion of the first pledge payment will build on their previously established Chancellor’s Research Fellowship, helping to extend opportunities for talented undergraduates to conduct research with UCR’s world-class faculty scholars.
A majority of this installment will focus on assisting students impacted by the federal government’s rescission of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) policy. The administration’s decision, announced in September, “threatens to separate families and derail the futures of some of this country’s brightest young minds, thousands of whom currently attend or have graduated from the University of California,” according to a statement issued at the time by University of California President Janet Napolitano.
“Diane and I have been moved by the personal stories of students who were brought to this country as children,” said Wilcox. “These bright young men and women have worked hard and shown uncommon courage in the face of great uncertainty. Diane and I feel the Dreamers represent the embodiment of the American Dream, both as we understand it and as our immigrant ancestors lived it before us.”
The new commitment was welcome news to the extended UCR family.
“Our Chancellor and his wife continue to demonstrate exceptional leadership and generosity on our campus,” said UCR Foundation Chair Darin P. Anderson. “On behalf of the UCR Foundation, I am grateful for their tireless advocacy of the University, their commitment to our students, and the boundless energy that has created strong momentum in so many areas. They humble and inspire those of us who are fortunate enough to be alumni of one of America’s great 21st century universities.”
