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Dec 9, 2025
UCI MIND secures major funding for new Alzheimer's research facility
News-Medical.net
University of California - IrvineDec 8 2025
With a $50 million lead gift from the Quilter family and approximately $30 million in new commitments, the University of California, Irvine's Institute for Memory Impairments and Neurological Disorders will begin planning to build a state-of-the-art research and care facility to enhance its position as a global leader in Alzheimer's disease and related dementias research and patient care.
UC Irvine alumni Charles Quilter, M.A. '06, Ph.D. '10, and Ann Quilter, M.S. '79, and their family members Patrick, Chris, Matt and Patty made the generous contribution to UCI MIND. Announced as the final transformational gift of the Brilliant Future campaign during the university's celebration on Oct. 4, the donation now propels a new campaign to create a dedicated center for advancing UCI MIND's critical mission.
The Quilters' gift has inspired others to pledge support, including Harriet Harris, the Brethren Community Foundation, Michael K. Hayde and Laura Khouri, and Keith Swayne. Together, total contributions for the proposed new building are already nearly $80 million.
We are profoundly grateful to the Quilter family for this remarkable lead gift. Their support will not only help fund a new building, but their gift and the generosity they have inspired in our community will empower UC Irvine to ultimately find cures for Alzheimer's and related dementias."
Howard Gillman, UC Irvine Chancellor
According to the Alzheimer's Association, an estimated 7.2 million Americans 65 and older are living with Alzheimer's disease, a number projected to increase significantly in the coming decades. In Orange County, Alzheimer's is the third-leading cause of death.
The Quilter commitment
Ann Quilter's passion for Alzheimer's research led her to make an initial $5 million gift to UCI MIND at her alma mater. In honor of her dedication, her family then surprised her on her birthday by increasing the donation to $50 million.
"UC Irvine has alway
