David Geffen, pictured center with UC Regent Sherry Lansing (left) and UCLA Chancellor Gene Block (right), at the 2014 Hippocratic Oath Ceremony, where he received the UCLA Medal.
Mr. David Geffen
David Geffen has made an indelible mark on many fields, including film, theater, and, most notably, music, where he created the legendary record companies Asylum and Geffen Records. Through his diverse and far-reaching philanthropy, he has created countless opportunities for others to succeed and has contributed to community and culture in myriad ways—supporting education, arts, discovery, and improved health.
With a $200 million gift to UCLA’s medical school in 2002, he propelled the school—renamed the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA to recognize his historic commitment—to its current status as a world-class education and research institution. In 2012, he made another transformative gift of $100 million to establish the merit-based David Geffen Medical Scholarships, which cover the entire cost of a medical education for hundreds of students, allowing them to pursue their passions and graduate debt-free and ready to serve society. David Geffen expanded this landmark medical scholarships program with an additional $46 million gift in 2019. This reinvestment brings the amount of the David Geffen Medical Scholarship Fund to $146 million and brings the total number of students expected to receive awards to 414 over a ten-year period.
In addition to his phenomenal philanthropy to health sciences, Mr. Geffen has made profound investments across the UCLA campus, including the establishment of the Geffen Playhouse, a world-class performance and arts education space, and the creation of the Geffen Academy at UCLA, an innovative middle and high school serving the children of UCLA staff and faculty and the greater Los Angeles community. He has served on numerous Boards in Los Angeles and New York City, is a former Regent of the University of California, and exemplifies the optimistic and innovative spirit that is the hallmark of UCLA. Geffen Hall is a testament to his extraordinary influence on the David Geffen School of Medicine.
