UC San Diego has always enjoyed the encouragement and support of the San Diego community. This was never truer than in the very early days, when campus founders promised great things from what appeared to be nothing but undeveloped land. Now, some forty years later, UC San Diego brings forward a new vision that may seem equally difficult for some to imagine. Now, just as then, the university's success will depend on the encouragement and participation of its community.

As UC San Diego embarks on a new decade of excellence, its spirit of entrepreneurship, a spirit that is shared with the San Diego community, will continue to fuel its growth and help turn its vision into reality. The campus begins the twenty-first century with an ambitious plan to build on past successes and further its legacy in both high-caliber educational opportunities and world-renowned research activities.

Recently, efforts on behalf of the Cancer Center facility demonstrated how a team of community members can work with university leaders to create solutions that work for the entire San Diego region. Together, the visionaries at UC San Diego and the entrepreneurs of the community can not only create new ideas, but also watch them flourish.

Given the needs of the community and the goals of the university, UC San Diego cannot simply hold its place in line, but rather, must lead the charge in bringing revolutionary ideas to the forefront. With the help of the community, UC San Diego can meet the pressing needs of the campus and create programs that will positively impact not only San Diego, but the entire world. UC San Diegoís somewhat unorthodox, community-driven approach will become highly visible as it approaches the leadership phase of a capital campaign, perhaps as early as January 2001.

A dream to build a state-of-the-art cancer center combining medical research and education with patient care and community service, is finally within reach thanks to partnerships with several community leaders.

Through months of ongoing strategic brainstorming sessions, the UC San Diego medical community and a team of local entrepreneurs found a way to help turn this dream into a tangible goal. Approximately half the funds necessary to build the clinical and research facility, or $47 million, were secured in early 2000. The university intends to honor the $20 million leadership gift provided by John and Rebecca Moores by naming the center the John and Rebecca Moores UCSD Cancer Center. Another major gift for the center was made by longtime supporters Jerome and Miriam Katzin, who donated $15 million. Other major donors include Richard Atkinson, president of the University of California, and his wife Rita, William and Robin Comer, Frank and Lee Goldberg, Maurice and Charmaine Kaplan, and Ron and Mary Taylor.

Pending ongoing fundraising and planning efforts, UC San Diego hopes to cut the ribbon on the new facility by the end of 2003.