The University of California in Santa Barbara, or UCSB, is one of the 10 universities that make up the public university in California. It’s located, as the name states in Santa Barbara, approximately 100 miles of Los Angeles. It can be traced back until 1891, when it first opened its doors as the Anna Blake School but has changed names since then a few times. This is not only a public, but also a research and space-grant university, and is considered to be one of America’s Public Ivy School, joining other universities like the University of Michigan, the University of Texas at Austin, University of Vermont, among others. The university as a whole offers over 85 undergraduate programs and 55 graduate degrees. It was ranked 37
The university as a whole offers over 85 undergraduate programs and 55 graduate degrees. It was ranked 37th among National Universities and in comparison to other public schools it ranked in 8th. It has a list of notable faculty members and alumni that range in different professional fields from Olympians to actors and astronauts. Roughly 90% of its students are from California, and that leave 4% that come from other US States, and 6% from other countries. It prides itself in its high-quality education, which is evident among its six Nobel Prize winners and dozens of winners of the Guggenheim and Fulbright Fellowships.
This university besides being a top university also sets its eyes on other goals like. Although the Kenny Slaught blog goes into different fundraising activities and charities that are promoted, these are those specific to UCSB. There are four lines that are invested in at UCSB: students, helping them become what they aspire to be, the community and culture, research, promoting curious minds to develop their ideas, and finally in education to ensure the highest education and their desire to stay at the top of their game. These four elements give the students of the university a unique experience that drives them to become professional who make a difference once they graduate. Many people invest in UCSB and the main reason they do this is to initially help students continue their inquisitive nature and participate in research or creative projects. This is only possible through collaborations and that support students from all around the world.
Their innovative programs differentiate them from other schools, and their perspective of how to go about educating their students truly sets them apart and needs visionary people who want these students to have the opportunity to change the world. Their constant evolution is yet another reason so many invest in through the UCSB Foundation, making sure the needs of their 21st-century students are met in and out of the classroom. Finally, the ability to shape the leaders that will have an impact not only locally, or nationally, but globally through leaders that were taught to lead, not to follow. The maturity of the university helps them maintain a very visible global position as a beacon of education. Investors participate in different ways to support the university because of all of these reasons and much more.
The UC Santa Barbara Foundation was founded in 1973 with the sole purpose of promoting UC Santa Barbara’s private and to manage its donated resources for its different focuses. An example of how these resources is used is with trustee Bruce G. Wilcox, graduate of 1977. UCSB served as a platform for him to open the doors to the world, and learn as he traveled around Asia. After graduating, he always knew that he wanted to give back to his alma mater and when it was the time he went back and asked the East Asian Studies and Language area what they needed, and he initially funded graduate fellowships. His first investment is materialized through a Ph.D. Student, Lingqian Kong. Up to date, he has funded 7 students, 3 Ph.D., and 4 Master students, that have all benefited from his investment and are now on their way to completing their graduate studies. A lot of these students would not have been able to take this path without Wilcox’s generosity and like him, there are many other trustees that have invested in UCSB.
There are many examples like that of Bruce Wilcox, and all of them create an impact, not only on the school but on the community. There are plenty of groups and programs that support other communities like kids interested in learning science through the UCSB’s Kids in Nature program. The objective behind this initiative is to create a long-lasting experience and memory to motivate and engage kids into learning about science, biodiversity, and nature.
At the end of the day, University of California in Santa Barbara is constantly looking for opportunities to offer students a better future, through the donations and investments of who understand the importance and impact this will have in the future.
* Featured Image courtesy of Ryosuke Yagi at Flickr.com