Emory University gets record $400 million gift

The Robert W. Woodruff Foundation has pledged $400 million to Emory University for medical research and to develop improved patient care models, the university announced Monday.

The gift is the largest ever received by the Atlanta-based university.

“This gift will allow us to accelerate the scientific discoveries needed for breakthroughs in patient care and to extend our reach in reducing the burden of disease for patients and their families,” Dr. Jonathan S. Lewin, Emory’s executive vice president for health affairs and CEO of Emory Healthcare, said in a statement.

Some beneficiaries of the gift will include the Winship Cancer Institute, which plans a new tower in Midtown, as well as plans for a new Health Sciences Research Building on Emory’s Druid Hills campus.

Robert W. Woodruff, the late leader of The Coca-Cola Company, became a major benefactor of Emory beginning in 1937. In 1979, he and his brother, George, gave Emory the then-record sum of $105 million, the first nine-figure gift to an institution of higher education.

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About the Author

Eric Stirgus

Eric Stirgus joined The Atlanta Journal-Constitution in 2001. He is the newsroom's education editor. Born and raised in Brooklyn, N.Y., Eric is active in the Atlanta Association of Black Journalists and the Education Writers Association and enjoys mentoring aspiring journalists.

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