FIU med school scores $10-mil gift

MAY 28, 2008

FIU leaders building up their fledgling med school are still lamenting the less-than-desired state funding included in the $66.2-billion state budget ($4-million less than they requested).

But today they announced some good money news: a $10-million donation from Benjamín León Jr., founder of Leon Medical Centers, to establish within the med school a center that focuses on elderly health care issues.

The money will establish the Benjamín León, Jr. Family Center for Geriatric Research and Education, plus the Leon Medical Centers Eminent Scholars Chair in Geriatrics.

FIU officials say the gift, eligible for a state match, is among the largest gifts ever made by a Cuban-American family to a U.S. university -- and the largest made to FIU.

Posted by Aaron Sharockman at 2:50:40 pm on May 28, 2008 in

Higher Education

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