College of Biological Sciences

Donor support for faculty, students, and research programs has allowed the College of Biological Sciences to tackle many of today’s most pressing challenges impacting human health, biodiversity, and environmental sustainability. In 2023, alum Deborah Neff ’76 gave the largest individual gift in the college’s history: $8 million to endow the deanship and support research into Alzheimer’s and other dementias at the Center for Neuroscience.

Campus leadership pose with donor couple Ravinder and Kamaljeet Khaira behind the lecture hall's building sign.

Every day, students now walk into the Khaira Lecture Hall, named in 2023 for Kamaljeet Singh-Khaira ’93, M.S. ’12 and Ravinder Khaira ’90 for their $1 million gift to the college. It is the first building on the UC Davis campus to carry an Indian name and inspires budding scientists of all backgrounds to pursue their goals.

With donor support, students receive mentoring, community-building, and networking opportunities to prepare them for success. The Summer Undergraduate Research Program, supported through philanthropy, fuels students’ passion for discovery, empowering them to make meaningful contributions to science and advancing their academic and professional growth.

Studying life on Earth is no small task and relies on interdisciplinary collaboration. Donors have been essential to the college’s mission of uniting experts from across diverse fields to provide our students with immersive, hands-on opportunities and a world-class education.

Funds Donated

$84.7M donated 113% of our goal reached

For more information contact

Jennifer Scott

Managing Executive Director of Development

jescott@ucdavis.edu

530-752-2097

60%

of our students complete a research project or paper during their course of study

30%

of our students participate in internships or field research experience

30%

of our students identify as the first to complete a 4-year degree in their family

Aggie sweethearts give $1M

Charles ’76 and Nancy Cooper ’76 pledged $1 million to support undergraduate research opportunities in the College of Biological Sciences (CBS), marking their most significant gift to the university. The endowment, named the Charles and Nancy Cooper Experiential Learning Fund, will allow students to engage in hands-on research in labs and the field. The Coopers, who met at UC Davis and married in 1974, say their gift is a way to give back to the community that shaped their lives and careers, ensuring future generations of students benefit from similar transformative experiences.