UC Davis received more than $11 million in donations from individuals, corporations and foundations in the months of June through August. These charitable contributions support faculty research, academic programs, classroom instruction, facilities improvements and student financial aid. Contributions made in this period include:

• A $1 million gift from Mars, Inc., funding an endowed chair in developmental nutrition in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.
• A $500,000 gift from Wendell P. Jacob for a new demonstration vineyard in the Maynard A. Amerine Teaching and Research Winery. The vineyard will be named after his father, the late Harry E. Jacob, a faculty member for over twenty years. The demonstration vineyard will serve as UC Davis' primary vineyard education site for classes and departmental tours.
• The first class gift of $4,540 was established by the Law School class of 2005. Alumni Phil Satre ('75) and Carol Livingston ('80) as well as Dean Rex Pershbacher pledged matching funds, making the total benefit nearly $30,000. Students were invited to designate how their gift would be used, with funds going to the King Hall Annual Fund, student scholarships, loan repayment program, law programs, or student organizations.
• A $16,888 gift from the National Geographic Society for the Department of Wildlife, Fish and Conservation Biology to track hammerhead sharks.
• A $30,944 class gift from the full-time and working professional classes of 2005 to the Graduate School of Management endowment. The first class gift was established in 2002 by the working professionals class.
• A $1.5 million philanthropic grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, funding an endowed professorship in sustainable agriculture. The foundation has also provided $95,000 to help the Agricultural Sustainability Institute plan and host an annual agriculture and food system symposium series for the nation's academic leaders.
• A $100,000 gift from Bert Douglass to the UC Davis Health System, for cancer research.
• $138,000 from the American Cancer Society to the College of Biological Sciences to fund research on the human breast cancer gene, which is responsible for a large proportion of familial-linked breast cancers.
• Two gifts of $50,000 – one from Nissan Motor Co. and one from Toyota Motor Corporation — to the Institute of Transportation Studies supporting the Hydrogen Pathways program.
• A $100,000 gift from Dr. Dan and Mrs. Virginia Terry, to the UC Davis School of Medicine. The gift will help fund medical student scholarships.
• A $42,500 gift from Intel Corporation to Electrical and Computer Engineering, in the School of Engineering, for work on wireless systems.
• An $80,000 gift from the American Chemical Society to Chemical Engineering in the School of Engineering for nanotechnology research.
• $156,000 from the William and Melinda Gates Foundation to conduct a study of the High Priority Schools Grants program, a state-funded program to improve student achievement and skills in California's lowest achieving schools.
• A $50,000 gift from Bill and Nancy Roe, to the Athletics division, supporting the multi-use stadium project.

— By Amanda Price