Steinmetz Foundation Gift Will Support Students in Perpetuity

The Steinmetz Foundation, long-time supporters of the Cotsen Institute of Archaeology, has made a $500,000 gift to the institute during the ongoing UCLA Centennial Campaign. This gift was increased by a 50% matching grant from the Chancellor’s Centennial Scholars Match for a total of $750,000. This “transformative” endowment, according to Willeke Wendrich, director of the Cotsen Institute, will provide assistance for graduate students now and into the future. The Steinmetz Foundation has provided continuing financial support for the Cotsen Institute for more than 20 years, and Charlie Steinmetz has been personally involved through his participation in Friends of Archaeology, the Cotsen Director’s Council, and his many activities in the field. According to Steinmetz, the Cotsen Institute “is a unique place for promoting scholarship and learning. It brings together great thinkers from many departments. The collaboration is fundamental for training effective leaders and scholars.”Keep an eye out for a detailed view into this transformational endowment and the Steinmetz Foundation in the next issue of Backdirt! To support our laboratories, research, and teaching in archaeology and conservation, or for more information, please contact Michelle Jacobson at mjacobson@ioa.ucla.edu.