About the UCSF Foundation - Fundraising News

PROJECT YOU CAN
UC president announces twin efforts to increase student support

Seeking to help keep the University of California accessible and affordable for California students, on Oct. 23, 2009, UC President Mark G. Yudof announced an ambitious fundraising effort that aims to raise $1 billion for student support over the next four years. Yudof also announced that he would be asking the UC Regents in November to expand the reach of an ongoing financial aid plan to ensure that eligible undergraduate students with family incomes of $70,000 or less will pay no systemwide fees.

Through the fundraising effort, Project You Can, all 10 UC campuses have committed to raise $1 billion in the aggregate over the next four years – doubling the amount of private support the system has raised for scholarships, fellowships and other gift aid in the previous five years. The UC Board of Regents will be asked to endorse the effort at its November meeting.

“The chancellors and I agree that we need to be working on all fronts to maintain and enhance access and affordability even in times of tight budgets and continuing state disinvestment,” Yudof said. “Our goal is to increase aid significantly for UC students receiving financial support and to make sure no qualified UC student is shut out simply because of a lack of resources.”

Yudof continued, “While what I have proposed today will allow us to preserve access and help students with financial need, they are not a substitute for adequate state support. We must continue our relentless advocacy in Sacramento for increased state funding, even while we explore new ways to increase support for the university and our students. We must be creative and flexible, except when it comes to one thing: the historic excellence of the university. That is one area where I will not compromise.”