Six of the seven former UCLA chief executives have campus
features named after them, including Charles E. Young Drive and
Dykstra Hall.
As Chancellor Albert Carnesale plans to step down on June 30,
the university may consider naming a building after him as
well.
UCLA has a history of naming buildings and other campus
landmarks after distinguished members of the university community.
In addition to the facilities named after past chancellors,
buildings on campus have been named after notable alumni such as
Ralph Bunche, who went on to win the Nobel Peace Prize for his
diplomatic work, and past administrators such as Charles Saxon, a
former University of California president and UCLA physics
professor.
Recently it has been more common for campus facilities to be
named after donors who give significant amounts of money to
specific projects, but the university also has a policy in place
that allows buildings to be named after people who have made
important non-monetary contributions.
Currently, 50 campus facilities, including buildings, plazas and
gardens, are named after distinguished administrators, faculty and
alumni. Another 29 facilities are named after financial donors.
According to the UCLA policy that governs how campus facilities
are named after donors and individuals, buildings can be named
after administrators who contribute significantly to the welfare of
the university.
The Chancellor’s Executive Committee must approve all
naming requests, which can be submitted by anyone. However, the
president of the UC system has final authority to name all
university properties, and would be responsible for approving
requests for naming UCLA facilities after a chancellor.
“Each chancellor (in the UC system) acts as the
representative of the UC president,” said Richard Mintz,
director of major gifts in UCLA’s development department.
“Naming authority is delegated to each chancellor, so
it’s not just a local thing.”
Raymond Allen, who served as UCLA chancellor from 1952 to 1959,
is the only former chancellor who does not have a building on
campus named for him. He resigned amid a scandal about
under-the-table payments to football players in the Pacific Coast
Conference, a precursor to the Pac-10, during his tenure as chief
executive.
However, some logistical issues stand in the way of a building
being immediately named after Carnesale.
The university does not begin considering naming a building
after an individual until at least two years after the person
leaves his or her post, according to university policy.
Rhea Turteltaub, vice chancellor of development, said university
officials hope to find donors for the currently unnamed buildings
on campus, including the Physics and Astronomy Building and the
Humanities Building.
Though no information was available on how much money a donor
would have to give to attach his or her name to one of these
buildings, other recently named buildings have typically gone for
between $5 million and $30 million, according to a February 2006
UCLA press release.
Mintz said the amount would depend on the type of building and
its location on campus, among other factors.
During the early part of UCLA’s history, many buildings
were named after distinguished administrators, faculty and alumni,
but it is now much more common for buildings to be named after
major donors.
Campaign UCLA, a recent 10-year fundraising push, set prices on
campus facilities ““ donors could have specific buildings and
features named after themselves. The campaign raised more than $3
billion.
Glorya Kaufman, for example, gave $18 million to put her name on
the former Women’s Gym, now home to the world arts and
cultures department. And in 2000, friends and relatives of Ronald
Reagan donated $150 million to have the new medical center named
after the former president.
With reports from Saleet Wolf, Bruin contributor.