2010 - UCSF School of Dentistry - University of California, San ...

dentistry.ucsf.edu
University of of California
San Francisco
School of Dentistry
UCSF Box 0248
San Francisco, CA 94143-0248
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Why We Give
Gary and Connie DeJong Armitage
“A case of wine” – a way to think about
the size of an annual gift that, contributed
regularly by each and every alumnus,
could make a tremendous difference in the
outlook for UCSF School of Dentistry
support through these financially troubled
times. So says UCSF Dentistry alumnus
Gary C. Armitage, DDS, MS (UCSF),
R. Earl Robinson Distinguished Professor
of Periodontology in the Department of
Orofacial Sciences, whose academic career
at the Parnassus Heights campus has
now touched on six decades.
“It has become apparent that the only
way to grow and thrive is to initiate and
sustain a perpetual fundraising campaign,”
Armitage says.
Armitage sat down recently with his
wife, Connie DeJong Armitage, to talk about
his career and their shared philosophy of
giving, alluding to an editorial on the
importance of strong and ongoing alumni
support he wrote during the summer of
2006 at the University of Otago at Dunedin,
New Zealand, as the Sir Thomas Kay Sidey
Visiting Professor. “The first step should
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Gary Armitage, DDS, and Connie DeJong Armitage
be to change the perception of potential
donors that the existing governmental
support is sufficient,” he said. “Alumni need
to be convinced that it is their responsibility
to become donors.”
Speaking of his years on the faculty,
Armitage observed, “I’ve been with the
University since 1971, and back then,
about 90 percent of our operating
budget came from the state of California.
Now it’s reversed – UCSF has become
a state-assisted, instead of a statesupported,
institution.”
The Armitages regard alumni financial
support as a critical component of any
strategy to maintain institutional academic
leadership. One way to achieve this is
through the recognition of distinguished
mentors, including current and former
faculty, observed Armitage.
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> To support the UCSF School of Dentistry, contact Christopher Ruetz at 415/476-3645 or cruetz@support.ucsf.edu