hat does this mean to the School of Medicine? “This new effort will bring funds given to the school closer to home,” said Judy Blackburn, Ph.D., assistant vice president for Resource Management, Office of External Affairs, University of Maryland Baltimore (UMB), and treasurer of the new foundation entity. “In the past, all gifts went into a central fund for the entire university system. Named or endowed funds did retain their individual purpose, and still will under the new system, but now we have an officially recognized venue to receive charitable gifts specifically to support the University of Maryland Baltimore and all its component programs, with the School of Medicine being far and away the greatest benefactor.”

According to Dean Donald E. Wilson, “This new foundation is an important opportunity for the School of Medicine to enhance and expand targeted support for our innovative, far-reaching efforts and contributions in the fields of research, medical education and other services to our community, our institution and our profession. I am especially pleased at the potential this has for supporting endowed chairs in specific areas of research and teaching.”

“Having a charitable foundation based on our campus means we can represent our specific interests to our own community,” said UMB President David J. Ramsay, DM, DPhil. “We

know our own goals, and this will enhance our ability to advocate for our programs, as well as strengthen our connections to alumni, regional and national corporations and foundations, and state and national legislators.”

The new foundation is “yet another way to support the School of Medicine as we continue on our path to achieving greatness,” said T. Sue Gladhill, UMB’s vice president for external affairs. “In fact, we expect that this will have a direct, positive effect on our fundraising efforts.”

It is worth noting that UMB has raised $153 million since its current fundraising campaign began, with the School of Medicine contributing $65 million of that amount. In FY2000, which just ended, the campus raised $37.1 million and and the medical school’s segment was a gratifying $21.2 million of that total.

Blackburn emphasized that the new foundation does not, in any way, take anything away from

the School of Medicine in terms of named gifts, endowments and other specific contributions. “This benefits the medical school, because we now can accept and invest gifts ourselves, which enhances the dollar value of every contribution, large and small, thanks to a stronger investment and interest base,” she explained. In addition, a board of trustees will have fiduciary responsibility for the foundation.

From now on, gifts should be made payable to the University of Maryland Baltimore Foundation, Inc. Specific guidelines for designating funds or endowments may be indicated on the description line of a check or attached in a letter accompanying a donation. Contributions still may be made by check, credit card, wire transfer, etc.

For further details or answers to any questions about the new foundation, friends and alumni are welcome to contact Judy Blackburn at 410-706-2949 or by e-mail at jblackburn@oeamail.umaryland.edu. “We exist to ensure that all gifts are used in accordance with the desires of the donors,” said Blackburn.

Much has happened at the University of Maryland School of Medicine in the six months since we last communicated. On October 24th, we broke ground on Health Sciences Facility II and were delighted that so many of our friends and alumni could join us at this festive event. Governor Parris Glendening, Dr. Ruth Kirschstein, Director of the NIH, and over 200 others helped us celebrate the groundbreaking of this $67 million state-of-the-art research facility.

In August, our Center for Vaccine Development received a $20.4 million grant from The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to develop and test a measles vaccine that can be used to immunize infants in developing countries. Measles is a largely forgotten disease in most wealthy industrialized countries because of the current measles vaccine. By contrast, measles still commonly causes severe disease and many deaths among infants and children in poor developing countries. Dr. Myron M. Levine and his team will create a measles vaccine that will dramatically reduce the suffering and death rate associated with measles. This grant becomes the largest single grant on an annual basis in School of Medicine history.

Last summer the Division of Orthopaedic Surgery in the Department of Surgery achieved departmental status, increasing the number of medical school departments to 23.

This move will streamline patient care, research, and doctor training by uniting the medical school’s world-renowned orthopaedic faculty under one administrative roof. The department will be better able to attract research funding and maintain its international reputation for excellence.

I am extremely pleased to report that the School of Medicine received $173 million in research funding in Fiscal Year 2000, an increase of 25 percent over Fiscal Year 1999. This level of research productivity places us among the premier medical schools in the country.

This fall we will complete and implement our new five-year strategic plan for the School of Medicine. One priority area in the strategic plan relates to strengthening our development and institutional advancement programs – which reflects the importance the School places on increasing private support. If you would like a copy of the new strategic plan, please give us a call and we’ll be happy to send one to you.

Thanks to the generosity of our

many friends and alumni, we have met our $65 million goal for the New Century Medicine campaign well ahead of schedule. On behalf of the entire School of Medicine community, I am grateful for the generous support that has been provided by the alumni, friends, corporations, and foundations who have positioned the University of Maryland School of Medicine to be among the nation’s leaders in a new century of medicine. Through the ongoing success of the New Century Medicine campaign, we have already seen the School’s endowments increase in value from $27 million to over $100 million. We have also established 19 new endowed faculty positions (12 chairs and 7 professorships), increasing our total to 25. During just the last fiscal year, the School of Medicine received a record setting $21.2 million, a 47% increase over the $14.5 million raised in FY 1999.

While I am pleased with the success thus far, I strongly believe the School’s greatest success is still ahead of us, and I look forward to working with you toward even higher goals.