NEW YORK (November 13, 2012) - The American Technion
Society (ATS) has announced a six-year, one-half billion
dollar fundraising campaign titled “Innovation for a
Better World,” to support the Technion-Israel Institute
of Technology in its quest to build academic excellence
and create a smarter, healthier and safer world. Nearly
$240 million of the fundraising goal has already been
raised during the campaign's three-year “quiet” phase.
The campaign is scheduled to end October 1, 2015.
“'Innovation for a Better World' is an especially
fitting name for this campaign, since it will help the
Technion do what it has always done with the support of
the ATS, namely to better the world by pushing the
limits of science and technology,” said incoming ATS
President Scott Leemaster. “Technion brainpower is
responsible for much of the growth and development of
the State of Israel, and ATS supporters, through their
support of the Technion, have had a direct impact on the
country's leadership in science and technology.”
The Technion's transformation from a little known
university in Haifa to a world-class center of global
science and technology research is well documented, and
the American Technion Society has played a key part in
its growth and achievements. Founded in 1940, the ATS is
the leading U.S. fundraising organization supporting
higher education in Israel. ATS Donors have found that
support for the Technion is the best way to realize a
return on their investment, and have given more than
$1.74 billion - the majority within the last decade.
The generosity of ATS donors has literally changed
the face of Technion campus, and helped make possible
recent achievements, including the university's third
Nobel Prize winner in seven years, and the selection
last year of a Technion-Cornell University partnership
to transform New York City into a leading global
technology center.
"The ATS mission continues to appeal to
philanthropists throughout the United States,” said ATS
Executive Vice President Melvyn H. Bloom. “This new
campaign builds on our impressive track record, which is
well-illustrated by our inclusion on the Chronicle of
Philanthropy 'Philanthropy 400' every year since it was
established. This track record provides us and our
donors with confidence that we can achieve our
individual and collective goals.”
During the campaign's three-year quiet period, the
ATS received a number of major gifts that will establish
and fund transformative projects in areas identified by
the Technion as being critical to fulfilling its
mission. Those priorities are: recruiting and retaining
topnotch faculty; attracting students who excel;
on-campus housing; and investment in interdisciplinary
research and in new state-of-the-art facilities. Among
those gifts were:
* A $30 million commitment from the estate of the late
Henry Taub and The Henry and Marilyn Taub Foundation.
$25 million is for the "Leaders in Science and
Technology" faculty recruitment program, and $5 million
for the Faculty of Computer Science
* Two grants from the Helmsley Trust for energy
research. $7.5 million for the Solar Energy Conversion
to Electricity and Biofuels - New Directions (a $15
million collaboration with the Weizmann Institute of
Science); and $5 million to establish the Leona M. and
Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust Energy Storage
Complex and Leaders in Energy Science Program
* $5 million for the Arlene and Arnold Goldstein SAMSON
Satellite
* $3.7 million for the Norman Seiden Multidisciplinary
Graduate Program in Nanoscience and Nanotechnology
* $3.5 million for the Isaac and Yvette Louria
Fellowship Fund
* $3 million for the Barbara and Jack Kay Endowed
Doctoral Fellowship Fund
* $3 million for Viterbi Fellowship Programs in the
Center for Computer Engineering
“Funding in our priority areas is critical if the
Technion is to continue to lead by innovation,” said
Technion President Professor Peretz Lavie. “The
Technion continues to view our contributions to Israel's
economy and security as important priorities, and in
addition we are ready to share our expertise to help
people advance all over the world. And we are able to
do that, thanks to the ongoing and major support of the
American Technion Society.”
The Technion-Israel Institute of Technology is a
major source of the innovation and brainpower that
drives the Israeli economy, and a key to Israel's renown
as the world's “Start-Up Nation.” Its three Nobel Prize
winners exemplify academic excellence. Technion people,
ideas and inventions make immeasurable contributions to
the world including life-saving medicine, sustainable
energy, computer science, water conservation and
nanotechnology.
American Technion Society (ATS) donors provide
critical support for the Technion - more than $1.74
billion since its inception in 1940. Based in New York
City, the ATS and its network of chapters across the
U.S. provide funds for scholarships, fellowships,
faculty recruitment and chairs, research, buildings,
laboratories, classrooms and dormitories, and more.