Six UC San Diego Chancellor’s Medal Honorees Announced

One of the university’s highest honors is bestowed on community and business leaders who have made a difference with philanthropy

Sheldon and Susan Engelhorn were both awarded the Chancellor’s Medal at the Founders’ Dinner 2011. Photo by Erik Jepsen/UC San Diego Publications

The University of California, San Diego has announced the recipients of the prestigious Chancellor’s Medals for 2012. Those chosen for the honor are Bob and Betty Beyster, Julia Brown, Peter and Peggy Preuss, and the late Arthur Brody, who passed away after he was selected to receive the award. The Chancellor’s Medal is one of the highest honors bestowed by UC San Diego to honor exceptional service in support of the university’s mission.

“I am delighted to announce that these generous university friends have been selected to receive the Chancellor’s Medal,” said Chancellor Marye Anne Fox. “From supporting our promising students to fueling innovative research that will benefit people around the globe, the impact of these visionaries cannot be overstated. Their legacy of support will be felt for generations.”

The 2012 Chancellor’s Medals will be awarded by UC San Diego’s incoming 8th Chancellor, Pradeep Khosla, as part of the university’s annual Founders’ Dinner celebration on Saturday, November 17.

“UC San Diego’s remarkable success and advancement have been achieved thanks, in part, to dedicated university supporters like this year’s Chancellor’s Medal recipients,” said Khosla. “I am honored to recognize these deserving individuals who have helped make this campus one of the top 10 public universities in the nation. Their lasting impact will continue to ensure UC San Diego’s place among the best universities in the world.”

Since the Chancellor’s Medal was established in 2000, it has been given to a select group of individuals whose long-standing contributions and involvement with UC San Diego have supported motivated students and furthered meaningful research, helped the campus and local communities grow and prosper, and inspired the community and enhanced the quality of life for San Diegans.

The Chancellor’s Medal honorees were chosen from an impressive group of nominees. With excerpts from their nominations, the honorees include:

Bob and Betty Beyster

“The Beysters’ generosity has resulted in better healthcare for San Diegans, access to education, new ways of educating business leaders, and leaps in our understanding of fields as diverse as genome sequencing and structural engineering.”

Sparking a 35-year legacy of supporting UC San Diego, Bob and Betty Beyster became Chancellor’s Associates in 1977, and since then, they have continuously invested time, strategic insight and resources in the university. Bob founded Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) in 1969, which has grown to a FORTUNE 500® company that delivers scientific and technical products and services. Bob is chairman emeritus of the UC San Diego Foundation Board of Trustees and has served on many campus boards. Betty was an active member of the Sulpizio Cardiovascular Center Board and the Medical Center Board of Advisors. Together, the couple established the Beyster Institute at the Rady School of Management. An endowed chair is named for Bob in the Jacobs School of Engineering, and the Beysters contributed to two other endowed chairs in Engineering, helping to recruit the best faculty to UC San Diego. They have made significant contributions to the Sulpizio Cardiovascular Center, the Rady School and many other areas of the campus including genomics research, The Preuss School UCSD, undergraduate scholarships through the Chancellor’s Challenge 5K Run/Walk for Scholars, UCSD-TV and Birch Aquarium.

Arthur Brody

“When asked why he contributed so much of his time and resources to UC San Diego, he responded that he does it because education is the greatest gift you can give someone.”

Arthur Brody, who passed recently in May, was a longtime supporter of UC San Diego and founding member of the UC San Diego Foundation Board of Trustees. As a student at Columbia University, Brody sparked a business by covering his textbooks in clear photographic film. In 1940, Brody founded Brodart Corporation, which became a major manufacturer of library and school supplies and equipment, including the plastic book jacket which is still used by libraries worldwide. Over the course of his service to the university, Brody was member of the University Librarians Advisory Board and up until his death, he served as a key member of the Dean’s Advisory Board of the Rady School of Management, where he established the Arthur Brody Endowed Chair. He was deeply involved with The Preuss School UCSD and the Shiley Eye Center, which is home to the Sophie and Arthur Brody Laboratory for Optic Nerve Biology, established with an endowed gift in 2003.

Julia Brown

“Her enthusiastic engagement with the university stems from her strong belief in the importance of its research and innovation, its economic impact and its potential as an engine of social mobility. Julia believes in developing talent and investing in people.”

Julia Brown has established herself as one of UC San Diego’s most active and generous supporters, inspiring future generations of leaders and innovators. A highly successful corporate officer in the biotechnology and biopharmaceutical industries, Brown was already a well-known member of the San Diego business community before she began to dedicate herself more fully to civic and philanthropic efforts. A trusted advisor, advocate and donor, Brown currently serves as chair of the UC San Diego Foundation Board of Trustees. She is also a member of the Division of Biological Sciences Dean’s Leadership Council, the Undergraduate Scholarship Council, Scripps Institution of Oceanography Director’s Cabinet, UC San Diego Health System Advisory Board, the University Librarian’s Advisory Council and The Preuss School Founders’ Circle. She has dedicated funding and mentorship for motivated undergraduates, as well as outstanding graduate students. She established a first-of-its kind faculty fellowship in biology. Brown is a steadfast advocate of higher education. She testified to the California Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Committee about the importance of the university to industry and California's economy. She has long been an advocate of STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) education and of advancing the early careers of promising scientists and future life science business leaders.

Peter, ’67, and Peggy Preuss

“Among UC San Diego’s proudest and life-changing ‘experiments,’ The Preuss School UCSD might not have been launched and sustained in the manner that it was without the philanthropic and volunteer efforts of the Preusses.”

UC San Diego alumnus Peter Preuss and his wife Peggy played a key role in the establishment of The Preuss School UCSD––a charter middle and high school on the campus of UC San Diego for motivated, low-income students whose parents have not graduated from college. The school was named in honor of their family’s generous financial support. The Preusses are impassioned champions of the school, which has proved to be a remarkable success story. Ranked by Newsweek as the nation’s “Top Transformative School,” The Preuss School serves a population of motivated students who might not otherwise have the chance to go on to higher education. In 2011, 95 percent of The Preuss School seniors were accepted to a four-year college or university. Peter, appointed a Regent of the University of California in 1996, and Peggy have a strong history of support for UC San Diego. Peter and Peggy have been longtime members of the UC San Diego Chancellor’s Associates, UCSD Alumni and the Chancellor’s Community Advisory Board. Peggy is a former teacher; Peter earned his master’s degree in mathematics from UC San Diego and went on to found San Diego-based Integrated Software Systems Corporation (ISSCO).

Other esteemed recipients of the Chancellor’s Medal include Neil Morgan (2000), Malin Burnham (2002), Darlene Shiley (2003), Charlie Robins (2003), and Maurice and Charmaine Kaplan (2005). Chancellor’s Medal recipients of 2010, during UC San Diego’s 50th Anniversary, include Pauline Foster, Audrey Geisel, Irwin and Joan Jacobs, Jerome and Miriam Katzin, and Ernest and Evelyn Rady. Richard and Rita Atkinson, John and Ann Davies, Sheldon and Susan Engelhorn, Anne Ratner, and L.S. and Alene Skaggs received the honor in 2011.

For more information on the Chancellor’s Medal, please visit chancellor.ucsd.edu/about-the-office/the-chancellors-medal.