Image: L. John P. Schauerman ’79. R. Lawrence E. Tannas ’59, MS ’61.
The UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science has established two new endowed faculty chairs to support the teaching and research of faculty members at the school. The new faculty chairs have been named in appreciation of the generous gifts of two alumni and their spouses:
* The John P. and Claudia H. Schauerman Endowed Chair in Engineering.
* The Carol and Lawrence E. Tannas Jr. Endowed Term Chair in Engineering.
The two gifts have been matched dollar for dollar through a gift from the Samueli Foundation. The foundation’s gift, created in June 2016, is intended to help UCLA Engineering during its planned major expansion of 1,000 additional students and 50 additional faculty members over the next several years.
“We are at the start of a new phase of growth for the Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science, and attracting and retaining the very best scholars is a top priority for us,” said Jayathi Murthy, the Ronald and Valerie Sugar Dean of UCLA Engineering. “Our faculty drive our research and teaching at the school, and an endowed chair provides them with additional resources to support their endeavors. I want to thank John and Claudia, and Larry and Carol, for their vision and generosity in support of the school as we reach for new heights.”
John P. Schauerman ’79 is a retired finance executive, most recently serving as the executive vice president of corporate development for Primoris Services Corp., a specialty construction and infrastructure company. He is a member of the UCLA Engineering Dean’s Executive Board. The new Schauerman Chair was created with a $1 million gift from John and his wife Claudia, along with a matching gift from the Samueli Foundation. It will be open to engineering school faculty members in any discipline.
Lawrence E. Tannas ’59, MS ’61, is a retired consultant in the electronic information display industry. He is a member of UCLA Engineering Dean’s Executive Board. The new Tannas Term Chair was created with a $500,000 gift from Larry and his wife Carol, with a matching gift from the Samueli Foundation. It will be open to engineering school faculty members in any discipline and will be held for a period of five years, at which point, the chair will be open again for a new holder.
This new term chair is the second faculty chair that the Tannases, longtime supporters of the school, have endowed . The previously established Carol and Lawrence E. Tannas Jr. Chair in Engineering is held by Yang Yang, a professor of materials science and engineering.
The new chairs are the 29th and 30th endowed faculty chairs at UCLA Engineering. Both gifts are part of the $4.2 billion UCLA Centennial Campaign, which is scheduled to conclude in December 2019 during UCLA’s 100th anniversary year.