Virginia Engineering Magazine, Fall 2004 Development

Virginia Engineering
Fall 2004, Volume 17, No. 1

development

Ann Lee Brown's Gifts Transform Electrical and Computer Engineering Education and Research

The School of Engineering and Applied Science is proud to announce the naming of the Charles L. Brown Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.

The naming is in honor of a gift by Ann Lee Brown, made in honor of her late husband, Charles L. Brown, Class of '43. The gift will be used to establish an endowment in the electrical and computer engineering department that will fund graduate fellowships and support course improvements and summer research experiences for undergraduate students.

Mrs. Brown also made a gift to the Jefferson Scholars program to establish the Charles L. Brown Jefferson Scholarship. The endowment will provide a four-year merit-based scholarship for an undergraduate interested in studying engineering. It is the first Jefferson Scholarship ever established for the Engineering School. She also made a gift to the Science and Engineering Library, a state-of-the-art facility housed in Clark Hall on McCormick

Charles L. Brown '43

Road. This library houses collections widely used by engineering students.

Mr. Brown was a man of great renown in the business world. He worked for AT&T for more than 40 years and served as CEO and chairman from 1979-1986. In 1982 he successfully divested AT&T's local phone business, the largest corporate reorganization in U.S. history, to settle federal antitrust litigation. In the process he

reinvigorated AT&T's research and development efforts and initiated AT&T global partnerships in Europe and Asia.

The Charles L. Brown Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering will now be able to take advantage of its strengths and rise to a leadership position in electrical and computer engineering and research. The department will be able to attract and support outstanding graduate students and will have resources for undergraduate course development and improvements and undergraduate research experiences. Mrs. Brown's gifts to the School, the Jefferson Scholars, and the Library are significant steps toward the enhancement of engineering and the sciences at the University.

Professors Doris Kuhlmann-Wilsdorf and William A. Jesser, Valerie Matthews and Dean James H. Aylor at the 2004 Thornton Society Dinner

Matthews Family Contributes Additional Funds to Wilsdorf Hall

The family of the late John W. Matthews, a former postdoctoral researcher at the University of Virginia and a groundbreaking materials researcher, has pledged $500,000 in his memory to the School of Engineering and Applied Science. Matthews, whose son is the rock music composer and performer Dave Matthews, was an IBM Corporation research scientist who had a long-term research affiliation with the Engineering School.
The gift will support the construction of a connector between Wilsdorf Hall and the Chemistry Building. Wilsdorf Hall is an under-construction materials science building that will serve as a research and teaching facility. The building will also house conference rooms and faculty offices. Previously, the Matthews Family contributed $500,000 for construction of a 1,000-square foot laboratory in the building in honor of Mr. Matthews' long relationship with the Engineering School and with Professors William Jesser and Doris Kuhlmann-Wilsdorf.
To view the progress of construction of Wilsdorf Hall and to see images and renderings, please see http://www.seas.virginia.edu/wilsdorf.

One Person, One Fund, One Incredible Difference

When you contribute to the Engineering School Annual Fund, lives are changed, doors are opened, and the possibilities are endless.

Some donors contribute a great deal but many contribute smaller amounts on a regular basis, each according to his or her means.

The overall impact is an essential financial support system for engineering education and research at the University of Virginia.

Annual Fund contributions seed and support School efforts, ranging from scholarships and fellowships to major capital construction. Donations support alumni activities and communications, parent activities, welcome and graduation gifts to undergraduates, faculty activities, undergraduate projects, and loans to students.

Gifts, no matter the size, help assure the continued excellence of engineering education at the University of Virginia.

Please join us in proving the power of one.

Visit us at http://www.seas.virginia.edu/vef to find out how to give to the Engineering School and to read about what your donations make possible.