Clusters of BSD and medical scholars funded
Many minds are better than one. That's the thinking behind a new set of biological-sciences and medical faculty to be known as "Pritzker scholars" and recruited with a $30 million gift by the Pritzker family of Chicago. The clusters of Pritzker scholars, says biological-sciences dean James Madara, are to be "uniquely synergistic and powerful groups" whose work will focus on promising areas of research and treatment, from neurosciences to genetics to cancer biology.

Widely known philanthropists whose business ventures include the Hyatt Hotel chain, the Pritzkers announced the gift on June 5, the 100th anniversary of Pritzker and Pritzker, the family law firm. "Our family has prospered in Chicago and has always felt an obligation to give back to the community," says Thomas Pritzker, JD'76, MBA'76, an executive-committee member of the University's board and also a board member of the Pritzker Foundation, which is making the gift.

Part of the University's recently announced $2 billion fund-raising campaign, the Chicago Initiative, the gift supports the Biological Sciences Division and the Pritzker School of Medicine, named for the family in 1968. Pritzker gave two reasons for the latest gift: "longstanding pride in the University's advancement of human knowledge, especially in medical research and training many of the nation's leading physicians and scientists," and "our sincere belief that with our support and that of other like-minded people, the University will continue to be the best place to invest in future discoveries."

The gift is, says President Don M. Randel, propitious. "By providing this gift now," he notes, "the Pritzkers will build on a long tradition of biomedical research at the University, ensuring the benefits of that research for generations to come."

The Pritzker family's many links to the University include support for the Law School as well as programs in South Asian studies and astronomy & astrophysics. Family members serve on the Physical Sciences Division Visiting Committee, the Visiting Committee for the School of Social Service Administration, the Visiting Committee on the Visual Arts, and the Women's Board. Jay Pritzker, Thomas's father, was a U of C life trustee at his 1999 death.
-S.A.S.

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