Generosity in Education: Professors Sherie and Donald Morrison Pledge $15.4 Million to UCLA
Professors Sherie and Donald Morrison will make a donation to UCLA of real estate valued at $15.4 million. The deferred gift adds to the Morrisons’ decades of philanthropic support of the campus that has been their academic and professional home for more than 30 years.
The Morrisons’ donation will be shared equally among four areas: the UCLA College Division of Life Sciences, the UCLA Anderson School of Management, UCLA Athletics and the UCLA Faculty Club.
“Sherie and Don Morrison have been outstanding supporters of UCLA, continuously demonstrating their belief in our university and their commitment to its success,” said UCLA Chancellor Gene Block. “Their remarkable legacy of giving will help shape UCLA’s future for generations to come.”
Sherie Morrison is a distinguished professor emerita and former chair of microbiology, immunology and molecular genetics in the UCLA College. Her research significantly advanced our understanding of how antibodies function. She holds numerous patents for antibody technology that serves as the basis for medicines used to treat autoimmune illnesses. Don Morrison is a professor emeritus of marketing and the former William E. Leonhard Professor of Management at UCLA Anderson.
In 2019, the Morrisons received the UCLA Medal, the highest honor the university bestows upon individuals.
“We thank Sherie and Don for their generosity and their receptivity,” said Rhea Turteltaub, UCLA’s vice chancellor for external affairs. “Their willingness to explore planned giving as an avenue for their philanthropy has resulted in a gift that will help key areas of campus life to continue to thrive.”
With a portion of the couple’s gift, the UCLA College Division of Life Sciences will establish the Sherie L. and Donald G. Morrison Endowed Graduate Support Fund in Microbiology, Immunology and Molecular Genetics. That fund will build upon the Morrisons’ previous giving, which includes the creation of three chairs within the life sciences division to support graduate and postdoctoral students along with teaching and research activities.
The gift will also benefit the Morrison Family Center for Marketing Research and Data Analytics at UCLA Anderson, which was established in 2015 thanks to a previous gift from the couple. The new funds will support research on customer loyalty and retention analytics, as well as the launch of new initiatives, including a health care analytics symposium.
The Morrisons also have deep ties to UCLA Athletics. Don, who ran for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology track team when he was an undergraduate, was UCLA’s faculty representative for athletics from 1994 through 2014. To honor that connection, portions of the gift will endow the Sherie L. and Donald G. Morrison UCLA Track & Field/Cross Country Head Coach position and support the women’s basketball program.
“We want our legacy to reflect who we are and what we care about,” Don Morrison said. “UCLA has been hugely important to both of us. Not only did we build our careers here — participating in the university’s rich and invigorating culture of thought and study — but our daughters Heather and Michelle, too, are part of the Bruin family.”
Finally, the gift will create the Sherie L. and Donald G. Morrison Quasi-Endowed Fund for the Faculty Club. The Morrisons have made several previous gifts to support the club, including a donation in 2022, which led to the creation of the Sherie Bar and Lounge and will fund the remodeling of spaces along the club’s main hallway. The new gift will help safeguard the club’s future by paying for maintenance costs.
“We directed our gift to these areas,” Sherie Morrison said, “in particular because our vision of UCLA is one of academic excellence — hence our decision to support both the fields of study to which we devoted our careers — but also one of athletic achievement and, ultimately, of collegiality and friendship.”