Alumni Profile

Alumna Audrey Rabinowitz Establishes Seminar Series at CAS and New Curriculum at School of Medicine

The quality of medical care that Audrey Rabinowitz (WSC '44) and her late husband, Wilber, received at the NYU Medical Center led them to dedicate a recent gift to the NYU School of Medicine. With Audrey's support, undergraduate and post-doctoral students will now be offered a series of seminars that will focus on the business of practicing medicine, which Wilber saw as a priority.

"The Rabinowitz's gift came at the perfect time," says Veronica Catanese, senior associate dean for education and associate professor of medicine and cell biology. "The business education of doctors has not been a focus for most medical schools and this is an area that NYU is beginning to address."

Audrey made an additional gift to NYU to establish a seminar series at the College of Arts and Science, which will bring undergraduate students together with a leading scholar from either NYU or an outside academic institution. This experience goes beyond the standard classroom format to expose students to both the content and methods of intellectual discourse.

News

The Campaign for NYU Breaks Records
Thanks to the generosity of alumni and friends, The Campaign for NYU raised a grand total of $3.075 billion, making it the most successful fundraising campaign in NYU historyÑand in the history of higher education to date.

The goal of the seven-year campaign, which concluded on August 31, 2008, was $2.5 billion. The University surpassed that goal eight months ahead of schedule. While other institutions are currently in the midst of campaigns that may reach higher totals, NYU is the first institution to complete a campaign with such an impressive number.

Donors made over 476,000 gifts during the campaign in support of the University's greatest priorities, from faculty recruitment and financial aid to new facilities, schools and academic programs. Contributions enabled NYU to establish over 700 new scholarship and fellowship funds and over 120 new professorships, and the impact of the campaign can also be seen in the many cutting-edge buildings, laboratories, and classrooms that have opened across campus.

"One of the greatest successes of the campaign has been in building community and in engaging the many different groups at NYU around one set of goals and priorities," says Debra LaMorte, senior vice president for development and alumni relations. "We are grateful to all of the alumni and friends who made it such a spectacular success."

"Although the campaign is over, our fundraising must continue in earnest," LaMorte adds. "We need the continued support of our entire community to maintain our success and meet the ongoing needs of our faculty, students and campus."

One fundraising initiative that the University is launching this fall is NYU's Call to Action, which asks alumni and friends to make contributions in support of financial aid. Stay tuned to www.nyu.edu/giving to find out how you can "take action" and help some of NYU's most deserving students.

Landmark Gift for Real Estate Institute
The School of Continuing and Professional Studies announced that its Real Estate Institute will be renamed the NYU Schack Institute of Real Estate in honor of the Schack family, who over the past 100 years has owned and developed real estate in New York City.

The Schack family has donated a $10 million cash gift—the largest in the School’s history—to provide critical support for students, faculty, research, and physical infrastructure. The contribution is the lead gift in a campaign to build a permanent endowment for the 40-year-old Institute, the University’s home for applied research, graduate study, and continuing professional education in real estate, construction management, and related fields.