The College of Letters and Science ended the Expect Greater: From UC Davis, for the World campaign with over $142 million raised, including the college’s largest gift ever.

During the eight-year campaign, Letters and Science received contributions from 15,500 gifts from 8,700 donors, among them a pledge of more than $20 million from philanthropist Maria Manetti Shrem to fund an arts renaissance at UC Davis. The campaign, during which the college doubled fundraising from its last campaign goal, also included 14 endowed chairs. 

“These gifts to the College of Letters and Science show our community’s commitment to an even more ambitious future,” said Estella Atekwana, dean of the College of Letters and Science. “They are helping us to aggressively expand support for our students and our faculty while accelerating our contributions to society through research and the arts.”

An arts renaissance at UC Davis

Manetti Shrem’s gift greatly expands her longstanding philanthropic partnership with arts education at UC Davis and promises to propel the arts to new heights. The $20 million gift is the largest ever to the College of Letters and Science and the largest to the arts in UC Davis history. 

Manetti Shrem’s gift funds eight new endowments for the Departments of Art, Art History and Design, including three new endowed faculty chairs. The gift also funds fellowships for graduate students in Art Studio and the establishment of the Maria Manetti Shrem Institute for Sustainable Design, Fashion, and Textiles.

The Letters and Science campaign also supported the reopening of the renovated Gorman Museum for Native American Art in 2023. The newly renovated space beside Putah Creek included a 4,000-square-foot gallery for contemporary Indigenous and Native American art. 

Endowed chairs to cement and expand research and teaching

The campaign supported new endowed chairs in Letters and Science, bringing the total to 21 funded faculty positions that elevate interdisciplinary research and world-class teaching. One of these, the Austin and Arutha Goss Presidential Chair in African American and African Studies, was created in 2021 by alumni Lois Goss (B.A. ’85) and Darryl Goss (B.A. ’83) to provide sustained funding for teaching, research and outreach about the history and culture of communities of African descent around the world.

Most recently, the Michael and Ester Vaida Endowed Chair in Cosmology and Astrophysics, the first endowed faculty position in the Department of Physics and Astronomy, was established by Michael L. Vaida (Ph.D. ’73) and his wife, Ester Vaida. The Vaidas also pledged support for a graduate fellowship and undergraduate scholarships.

Supporting student success and research

Gifts from this campaign supported a wide variety of areas that elevated teaching and research. This includes programs that support students, like the Beyond the Classroom fund that provides hands-on learning opportunities. Gifts have also supported innovative research initiatives like the Global Tea Institute that serves as the world’s first center for the interdisciplinary study of tea. In 2022, the Mellon Foundation awarded $1.5M for disability studies.

Letters and Science at a glance:

• The College of Letters and Science offers an exceptional breadth of academic opportunity, with 110 undergraduate majors and minors, and more than 30 graduate programs
• Over 14,600 undergraduates and over 1,500 graduate students major in one of our programs of study
• 50% of Letters and Science students conduct independent research and creative projects outside the classroom
• In 2024, The Wall Street Journal ranked UC Davis #3 among U.S. public universities in how well it sets up its students for financial success.

Expect Greater at UC Davis

From July 2016 through June 2024, over 133,000 donors worldwide gave $2,255,625,098 in more than 448,000 gifts and pledges to support UC Davis’ efforts to advance solutions to the planet’s most pressing problems and build a brighter future for California and beyond. 

UC Davis exceeded its $2 billion campaign goal 10 months ahead of schedule, in August 2023. The campaign launched publicly in 2020 amid a worldwide pandemic that closed schools and spurred economic uncertainty.

The final year of the Expect Greater campaign was the second-best fundraising year in UC Davis history. In fiscal year 2023-24, UC Davis raised over $290 million, or about $55 million more than its annual fundraising goal. More than 93% of gifts to UC Davis were $1,000 or less, with a median gift amount of $25.

“We are deeply grateful to all who have given so generously throughout this campaign,” said Chancellor Gary S. May. “On behalf of our students, faculty and the entire UC Davis community, thank you for believing in our mission and strengthening our impact at home and around the world.” 

“Expect Greater has proven that when we come together, our community can achieve extraordinary things,” said Shaun B. Keister, vice chancellor for Development and Alumni Relations. "Its success demonstrates the profound trust our donors place in us to educate, innovate and lead. We are immensely grateful for their support and partnership."