In This Section:
An unparalleled gift
The Burton Family Football Complex takes shape
Proud families dedicated to community pharmacies
Campaign UConn enters final phase

Software giant UGS PLM Solutions grant valued at over $146 million

The largest contribution ever received by the University of Connecticut has been made by UGS PLM Solutions, a subsidiary of EDS, the world's largest independent information technology services company. UGS PLM made a grant with a commercial value of $146.1 million that will provide students and faculty in the School of Engineering with a suite of leading industry software that will help them conceive, design, engineer and validate projects, using the same tools as today's leading manufacturing and technology companies use.

"This grant signifies a unique and enormously valuable collaboratio n between one of the nation's major public research universities and one of the nation's most innovative and far-sighted companies," says President Philip E. Austin. "The nature and scope of the grant are unparalleled in UConn's history and will strengthen further a School of Engineering that is already making great strides in research, instruction and service to the wider community. E-engineering and e-commerce are vital components of Connecticut's economic growth, and we are delighted to partner with EDS in this great venture."

The UGS PLM grant includes software products used by technologists and engineers at General Motors, Boeing, Toyota, AT&T, IBM, Hitachi, Lockheed Martin, Pratt & Whitney, General Dynamics and many other leading global companies.

"This grant will position the University of Connecticut among the leaders in e-engineering education and will ensure that UConn's students and faculty have access to world-class e-engineering support," says Amir Faghri, dean of the School of Engineering. "UGS PLM Solutions will serve as UConn's educational partner, helping train engineering students in using the most cutting-edge product design and development software on the market today."

The grant covers a suite of product lifecycle management tools for computer aided design, computer aided manufacturing, and computer aided engineering. UGS PLM Solutions software will permit the School of Engineering to significantly enhance the integration of e-engineering into its curriculum at the undergraduate and graduate levels. Students will design product models, simulate their operation and quantitatively evaluate their performance, beginning at the concept stage and proceeding through all manufacturing phases to final production.

"UGS PLM Solutions made this significant investment in the UConn School of Engineering as a result of the outstanding engineering programs it offers and the emphasis it places on undergraduate, university-industry, research and outreach programs," says John Saia, president of UGS PLM Solutions' northeastern region. "Today's leading manufacturers compete on the basis of time-to-market, product cost, quality and innovation. Students must have the opportunity to gain experience with technology that supports these objectives."

The grant to UConn is among the largest UGS PLM Solutions has awarded to a university.

Rendering: ICI Architects/HOK

Preliminary designs have been completed the The Burton Family Football Complex and the Indoor Facility. The lead gift for the Football Complex is a $2.5 million contribution by Robert G. Burton, whose son, Michael '99 (CLAS) was captain of the 1999 Husky football team. The Burton Family Football Complex will serve as the on-campus home of UConn football, while the Indoor Facility will serve as an exciting new venue for a number of intercollegiate and student recreation programs. Construction is expected to begin in winter 2004-05 with completion slated for summer 2006.

Classmates & fraternity brothers join in giving back

Sam Kalmanowitz '61 (PHR) and David "Buddy" Roth '61 (PHR) met as UConn pharmacy students in the late 1950's, joined the same fraternity, and have been close friends ever since. In a fitting touch, each has made a $200,000 commitment to the School of Pharmacy's Endowment for the 21st Century and will name two state-of-the-art classrooms planned for the new Pharmacy-Biology building after beloved family members.

Roth and his wife, Brenda Maxen Roth '61 (ED), made their gift in honor of his family's long history in community pharmacy and in memory of his father, Oscar Roth, a pharmacist for more than 50 years and a past supreme directorum of the AZO Pharmaceutical Fraternity until his death in 1985.

"I started working for my father when I was 8 or 9 years old and I'm proud to say that my family has been involved in community pharmacy for more than 70 years," says David Roth, an owner of successful pharmacies in Hamden for 32 years. "I came to UConn to earn my degree and have been fortunate enough in my business to donate to a number of worthy causes, of which UConn is certainly one."

Kalmanowitz, a member of the UConn School of Pharmacy Advisory Board and former owner of a retail pharmacy in Meriden, Conn., for 40 years, was drawn to pharmacy at an early age because he felt the profession provided a chance to help people. Because of UConn's reputation as a top-notch place for pharmacy studies, he enrolled at the University. He notes that the current fund-raising campaign provides an opportunity to give something back to the school where his career began. The new room will be named for his parents, Milton and Rose Kalmanowitz.

"UConn does a tremendous job preparing tomorrow's pharmacists to enter the profession. It's a worthy investment of some of the fruits of my education to help young people pursue their goals of becoming pharmacists," Kalmanowitz says.

The School of Pharmacy is raising $5 million as part of Campaign UConn to support faculty, students, and programs that will help advance the School among nationally recognized leaders in pharmaceutical research and education.

As of Dec. 31, 2003, Campaign UConn - the largest fundraising effort in the University's history - had raised $269.8 million in new gifts and commitments, representing 90 percent of the overall $300 million campaign goal. The recent $146.1 million gift from EDS (see above) raised the overall total to $415.9 million.

With three months remaining until the campaign's June 30, 2004, conclusion, the focus is on meeting the two final goals of increasing scholarships and faculty support. Funds raised for scholarships are at $41.8 million, while support for faculty is at $25.3 million. Each has a goal of $75 million.

"We are quite pleased that the EDS gift enabled us to reach our overall campaign goal," says UConn Foundation president John K. Martin. "However, it's also crucial that we have a well-funded scholarship program to provide access to the widest population of students while continuing to attract the best and the brightest. Similarly, being able to recruit internationally renowned researchers and educators depends heavily on providing the resources they need to carry on their work."