University Silent About Two $20-Million Gifts

The University of California at Irvine has received a pair of $20-million donations that it refuses to discuss in detail, the Orange County Register reports.

The university’s chancellor, Michael Drake, said he did not know anything about the gifts when he held a news conference last week announcing that the university had raised $120.1-million during the fiscal year that ended June 30. The two $20-million gifts also were not mentioned in the event’s news release.

But after the briefing, Mr. Drake’s fund-raising chief, Tom Mitchell, said the institution had received “at least two” gifts of $20-million or more. Mr. Mitchell would not say who gave the donations or how the money would be used.

Sue Menning, a university spokeswoman, said neither of the donations have yet been directed to a specific campus program, and that the donor of one of the gifts asked that it not be publicized until a designation was made. The donor of the other gift has requested anonymity, she said.