We are the UCLA Samueli Class of 2020 and we wish to contribute to Dean Murthy's effort to support our fellow engineering students and the greater community during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

This highly dynamic crisis continues to have rippling effects across the globe.  We have all felt the profound impact in our communities and personal lives. Our campus has made the difficult choice to extend remote learning through the end of July 2020 to limit the spread of COVID-19 and to protect the health and safety of our fellow students, faculty and staff.  

Students have been asked to return home to learn remotely if they are safely able to do so and all non-essential campus operations have been suspended.  While this is far from how we envisioned ending our undergraduate careers, we remain committed to UCLA’s core values of education, research, and service.    

Now more than ever, we must unite as problem solvers and uphold our school’s mission to engineer change.

Immediate Student Needs

As Bruin Engineers, we pride ourselves on ensuring individuals of all backgrounds have access to a UCLA Samueli education.  Unfortunately, many members of our community who have returned home do not have local access to the resources critical for our studies that are normally available on campus.  Members of our community are in need of: 

• Laptops

• Reliable access to WiFi

• Speciality software for senior design courses

• Lab equipment to perform new remote learning format experiments

We invite you to join us in supporting the UCLA Samueli COVID-19 Community Support Fund which is being used to help our peers who may not have the resources to purchase these items.

Ongoing Student Needs

Additionally, we recognize many individuals have faced unexpected challenges:

• Paid internship offers have been withdrawn

• Part time jobs have been lost

• Family members have been laid off

• Students have been unable to safely return to their families because of travel restrictions

These and many more consequences of COVID-19 have impacted student’s ability to cover educational expenses.  These impacts will continue to be felt even after we are able to safely reconvene in SEAS Cafe or the Student Creativity Center. 

Accordingly, this UCLA Samueli COVID-19 Community Support Fund will not only support student’s immediate need for supplies in this new virtual environment, but continue to support the varied financial needs of our students into the near future.

Community PPE Needs

However, as engineers we also recognize our obligation to uphold the public good.  Beyond our immediate community, we are prepared to use our skills and ingenuity to respond to the shortage in personal protective equipment (PPE) for the medical professionals at the front lines of this crisis.  Our faculty are busy collaborating with colleagues across campus to produce much needed PPE for local hospitals. Professor Jacob Schmidt has led the effort to manufacture surgical face shields at the UCLA Innovation Lab and others are making PPE prototypes, including N95 masks, compact ventilators and powered air purifying respirators (PAPR).  While social distancing prevents us from assisting in this manufacturing process in person, we can still help ensure our faculty have the resources to procure the raw materials needed for this life saving equipment.

Therefore, a portion of the UCLA Samueli COVID-19 Community Support Fund will help guarantee our school is able to continue and expand this critical production process. 

With these efforts, the Class of 2020 is addressing both short-term and long-term effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. During these unprecedented and difficult times, this campaign will help not only our fellow students but also the community at large, as we all face COVID-19 together. 

Help us accomplish our goal of advancing UCLA Samueli’s response to this crisis and establish a legacy of resiliency in the face of unprecedented challenges.

The UCLA Samueli Senior Class Campaign

The Samueli Senior Class Gift has been a tradition for the past 16 years. Each year, the Campaign Committee comes up with ways to leave their mark as they leave the school. Previous projects have supported upgrading the water efficiency of Boelter Hall restroom fixtures, the CEED summer bridge program, and programs and resources to promote student mental wellness. Donations come from students, alumni, faculty, parents,and friends to honor the graduating class. 

CLICK HERE TO READ THE UCLA FOUNDATION'S DISCLOSURE STATEMENTS FOR DONORS.