HEALTH SCIENCE EDUCATION BUILDING

During the 2009 legislative session, funding was approved for the new 59,000 Sq Ft Health Sciences building on the Reno campus, which along with the Pennington Education Building, will be the educational hub for medical and nursing students on our campus.  In addition we have received a commitment for a naming level gift, so we are nearing completion of the fundraising needed.  Architectural plans are complete and construction is scheduled to begin in January, 2010, with occupancy slated for the fall semester, 2011.

A building fund has been established; any level of contribution to this fund will help the School of Medicine reach its goal so that the project can proceed.  Naming opportunities are available from as little as $500 for furniture to higher levels for labs, offices and classrooms.

UNSOM is still one of the smallest medical schools in the nation.  This new educational resource will allow us to double the size of our medical school class from what it has been for the past 25 years, 52 students, to over 100 students.  In addition, its construction will move Nevada toward collaborative health sciences education through a shared teaching environment for medicine and nursing. The new Health Sciences Building represents, along with the Center for Molecular Medicine already under construction (see www.medicine.nevada.edu/cmm/ for more information on this large research facility scheduled for completion in 2010), a quantum improvement in our environment for teaching and research, and for collaborative service to the public.

ENDOWED POSITIONS

An endowed position in higher education is a primary means of recognizing academic distinction, and enables the university to attract, retain, and honor distinguished faculty.  This type of position is supported by income from an endowed fund established through gifts from private sources.  The School of Medicine received one of the earliest endowed positions in the University of Nevada system, and would be greatly strengthened by the addition of additional named positions through which faculty achievements in research, teaching, and service could be recognized and rewarded.  Below are the thresholds for establishing endowed positions:

• Dean’s Chair - $5 million - A dean’s chair will provide a holder of the deanship with the resources necessary to continue and further the college’s contributions to teaching, research, and public service.  Support monies will be used for such purposes as salary supplement, graduate assistant stipends, administrative assistance, travel expenses, and other college requirements.

• Chair - $2.5 million - A chair will provide a distinguished scholar the opportunity to continue his/her contributions to research, teaching, and public service through salary supplement and program support.

• Distinguished Professorship - $1 million - A research professorship is intended to supplement salary and research expenses for distinguished faculty with significant research qualifications and research projects.

• Professorship - $500,000 - A professorship is intended to recognize and support the teaching, research, and service activities of distinguished faculty without the requirement for demonstration of particular emphasis on research.

• Distinguished Visiting Scholar - $300,000 - The distinguished scholar endowment is intended to fund a visiting eminent scholar.

PLANNED GIFT

There are a number of options for individuals wishing to provide for the School of Medicine through estate gifts.  As with all estate and tax matters, you should seek qualified legal, tax and financial advice in developing your plan.

The following are a few of the gift options available:

• Charitable Gift Annuity Program

• Charitable Lead Trusts

• Charitable Remainder Trusts

• Life Insurance

• Living Trusts

• Real Estate

• Remainder Interest in Home or Farm

• Retirement Accounts

• Wills

ENDOWED SCHOLARSHIPS

Endowed scholarships provide critical financial support for medical students.  In recent years, UNSOM graduates have carried almost $120,000 in debt.  Last year, the School of Medicine was able to award almost $900,000 to medical students through support from endowed scholarships.  In addition, these awards allow the school to attract the best and brightest applicants to the School of Medicine program. 

A named scholarship exists in perpetuity as a memorial to the donor or the person honored.  The University Foundation endows scholarships at a level of $10,000 or more.  Once the $10,000 principle or corpus of the endowment is established, the scholarship itself is paid from a portion of the interest income.   Any remaining earned interest is reinvested with the principle, allowing the endowment to grow over time. 

The minimum endowment amount of $10,000 can be made with a single gift or contributed in a series of pledge payments over one to four years.  In addition, contributions can be made to already established endowed scholarships in any amount from those wishing to support deserving students.  Please contact the development office for a current list of endowed funds. 

ANNUAL GIFTS
The Annual Giving program within the School of Medicine provides an opportunity for alumni and friends to give back to the school on a recurring basis. Unrestricted funds from this program provide scholarship, programmatic and capital support that wouldn’t be feasible without the generosity of many alumni and friends of the school.  The School of Medicine has had a rich history of support from its alumni.  Continued support will allow the school to realize its goals of making medical education available to larger classes in the future. Although there is a formal mail and phone solicitation each spring, gifts can be made to the annual fund throughout the year.

For more information about Giving contact: 

Stefanie Scoppettone, Ph.D.

Director of Development

775.682.9143

scops@unr.edu

Christina Sarman

Assistant Director of Development

775.784.6009

christinas@unr.edu

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