Stanford Receives $400M Donation

The Hewlett Foundation will donate $400 million to Stanford University, the largest gift ever given to any university, the foundation announced on Wednesday.

One-third of the money will go to Stanford's School of Humanities and Sciences. These funds will be divided between the school's unrestricted endowment and its professorships and graduate fellowships.

The remaining $100 million will be invested in undergraduate scholarships and undergraduate education.

"This sets a wonderful example and encourages other Stanford alumni and friends to step up and help the School of Humanities and Sciences especially," said John B. Ford, Stanford's vice president for development.

The donation follows the January death of William R. Hewlett, who founded the Hewlett-Packard Company with David Packard in 1936.

"This gift is a tribute to my father," Walter B. Hewlett, foundation chair and son of William R. Hewlett, said in a press release. "It honors his lifetime of philanthropy, his lifelong devotion to Stanford and his passionate belief in the value of a liberal arts education. Had he lived, I am certain this is something he would have done himself."

Ford said Hewlett, Packard and the foundations associated with their names have donated around $400 million in smaller donations over the years as well.

Stanford is currently involved in a campaign to raise $1 billion for undergraduate education. Administrators said the campaign would not end, although the Hewlett donation brought them much closer to their goal.

"This is a wonderful gift, but it doesn't mean our work is over," said Ceci Evangelista, the special assistant to the vice president of development.

But the donation is unprecedented for any University, and is more than five times larger than any gift Harvard has ever received.

The largest donation given to Harvard was $70.5 million, given by John and Frances Loeb in the 1999 capital campaign, according to Andy Tiedemann, the spokesperson for Harvard's development office.

--Staff writer Anne K. Kofol can be reached at kofol@fas.harvard.edu.