Dr. Allen and Charlotte Ginsburg commit $31 million to UCLA Research Park, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA

Local philanthropists' estate gift invests in graduate education in the biomedical sciences, groundbreaking research and capital for pioneering work

LOS ANGELES, Nov. 5, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- UCLA Health has received a $31 million commitment from Dr. Allen and Charlotte Ginsburg and their research foundation to advance biomedical research at the UCLA Research Park. The latest pledge brings the couple's total giving to UCLA to $60 million.

The pledge is designed to foster generations of leaders, advance discovery science and provide the laboratory resources needed to support the work. The commitment provides holistic funding for new breakthroughs in basic, translational and clinical science — and the people who lead these efforts.

"Allen and Charlotte Ginsburg's visionary contribution to the David Geffen School of Medicine and the UCLA Research Park will have a transformative impact," said UCLA Chancellor Julio Frenk. "Their generosity supports our acceleration of breakthrough research into real-world solutions — deepening collaboration across disciplines, feeding innovation, and strengthening our ties with industry and the broader community. Together, we're building a stronger hub for discovery — one that brings bold ideas to life and extends UCLA's reach far beyond campus."

"We are immensely thankful to Allen and Charlotte for their generosity and philanthropic leadership," said Dr. John Mazziotta, vice chancellor of UCLA Health Sciences and CEO of UCLA Health, who played a key role in realizing the acquisition of the research park and the establishment of the California Institute for Immunology and Immunotherapy. "Their commitment will help us champion scientific investigators and their work at every turn, where aspiring faculty face the most imposing challenges of their young careers: building a research team and portfolio. The Ginsburgs understand this talent bottleneck and confront it directly with comprehensive support."

The gift directs $11 million to the Dr. Allen and Charlotte Ginsburg Fund for Graduate Student Support, which will provide financial and research funding for graduate students, doctoral trainees and postdoctoral candidates. The transition from trainee to faculty after extensive academic work is particularly difficult for early-career candidates. Awards will subsidize research, tuition, books, housing and similar expenses that enable these aspiring research faculty to complete their education, be mentored in a world-class environment and launch their careers with momentum.

Recipients selected by the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA through a competitive review will be recognized as Ginsburg Scholars/Fellows. Successive generations of these fellows and scholars will form cohorts of highly talented biomedical researchers.

The next $10 million will create the Dr. Allen and Charlotte Ginsburg Biomedical Frontiers Fund. The medical school dean will convene a selection committee to award research funding to some of the most promising biomedical investigations and teams from the school of medicine, quantum innovation hub and the California Institute for Immunology and Immunotherapy, who will conduct their work at the UCLA Research Park.

The final $10 million will support the capital needs of the UCLA Research Park, including laboratories and unrivaled tools that will underpin the research planned for the park.

In recognition of the couple's cumulative philanthropy, UCLA will name the Dr. Allen and Charlotte Ginsburg Foyer, the Dr. Allen and Charlotte Ginsburg Paseo and the Dr. Allen and Charlotte Ginsburg Innovation Bridge in the UCLA Research Park.

Together, these namings honor the couple's significant investment — past, present and future — in biomedical research, scientists and the labs where they work. A previous $29 million gift enabled UCLA to establish the UCLA Dr. Allen and Charlotte Ginsburg Center for Precision Genomic Medicine.

The Ginsburgs, who have been married for more than 45 years and reside on the Palos Verdes Peninsula, said this latest commitment is one of many that reflect their focus on people, projects and institutions that work to improve human health.

"Charlotte and I believe that science plays an outsized role in clinical care. Our gift seeks to ensure that the generations who follow have the resources, tools and mentors to continue to advance human health and well-being," said philanthropist and real estate entrepreneur Dr. Allen Ginsburg. "The UCLA Research Park is the latest example of UCLA's focus on generating discoveries that benefit patients everywhere."

Ginsburg, a retired ophthalmologist who completed his residency at UCLA in 1963, practiced medicine in Redondo Beach for many years.

"This is also why we have created the Dr. Allen and Charlotte Ginsburg Research Foundation: so that our investment in research and innovation in Southern California will live on beyond our lifetimes," added Charlotte Ginsburg, a performing arts patron and enthusiast. 

"This extraordinary gift exemplifies how vision and generosity can accelerate discovery," said Dr. Steven Dubinett, dean of the Geffen School of Medicine. "It underscores the essential role of philanthropy in advancing science and cultivating the next generation of innovators. I am deeply grateful to the Ginsburgs for their profound partnership as we build an unparalleled ecosystem at the UCLA Research Park."

SOURCE UCLA Health