Biological Sciences Dean Frank Laferla announced at the UCI Biological Sciences graduation ceremony on June 15, that the school has been renamed the Charlie Dunlop School of Biological Sciences. The change comes after Orange County biotech entrepreneur Charlie Dunlop donated $50 million to the school.
Dunlop was the commencement speaker at the Biological Sciences graduation ceremony, where Laferla announced his donation and the school’s name change.
“I am thrilled to announce that our commencement speaker, Mr. Charlie Dunlop, has bestowed upon our school a gift of $50 million,” Laferla announced at the graduation ceremony. “Thanks to him, the school will now enter a new era of discovery and significance and excellence.”
The announcement came after Dunlop gave his speech to the graduates, where he shared his experience owning the biotechnology business Ambry Genetics, which was sold in 2017 to Konica Minolta for $1 billion.
Dunlop is a UC San Diego alum and a Laguna Beach resident. He is a part of the biological science’s dean’s leadership council and spoke at the 2016 commencement. Dunlop credits the University of California for helping his career and his family, as Dunlop’s siblings and wife were all graduates from UC schools.
“We’re a long-standing University of California family,” Dunlop announced. “We felt strongly that we were going to do something for the university because it’s done so much for our families over the generations.”
The donation will be used to aid further research and academic pursuits within the Charlie Dunlop School of Biological Sciences.
Laiyla Santillan is the Spring 2024 Editor in Chief. She can be reached at eic@newuniversity.org.
Skylar Paxton is a 2024 Opinion Apprentice. She can be reached at paxtons@uci.edu.
