Tufts University School of Medicine Receives $15 Million Gift

Boston, Mass. (September 4, 2007) - Tufts University School of Medicine (TUSM) today announced that it has received a $15 million gift from the Jaharis Family Foundation. This is the largest gift in the medical school's history.

TUSM will utilize the money to build a state-of-the-art medical education and student campus center. Complete with a clinical skills and medical simulation center, the student-focused center will transform the medical education and quality of life among Tufts' medical students.

"The broad impact that this philanthropy will have on the school is remarkable. It builds momentum toward all that we in the Tufts medical community are working to achieve through our collective strategic plan for medical education and research," said Dean Michael Rosenblatt, Tufts University School of Medicine.

Moreover, the Jaharis family is challenging the school's donor community to contribute an additional $7.5 million toward the building. As more funding is raised for this project, corresponding proportions of the Jaharis Family's gift will be shifted to provide up to 15 much-needed, half-scholarships for medical students.

Steven Jaharis, MD, a 1987 graduate of TUSM, and his father Michael are dedicated supporters of Tufts University and the medical school. Steven, a member of the Board of Overseers to the medical and Sackler schools, championed support for this latest project.

"I can say from experience that Tufts University School of Medicine is already a student-friendly place, distinguished by the closeness between faculty and students," said Jaharis. "This project will enhance that sense of community at Tufts and make the student experience even better."

"Steven Jaharis possesses a strong desire to be helpful, a passionate imagination and a deeply felt need to translate passion into action," said Tufts University President Lawrence S. Bacow. "To those who know his father, it will be clear that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. Once again, the Jaharis family has made a transformative investment in the Tufts University School of Medicine. We could not ask for better, more loyal or more generous friends."

Michael Jaharis, founder and chairman emeritus of Miami-based Kos Pharmaceutical Co., is noted for his generosity to science, medicine and the preservation of antiquities. As chairman of the Board of Overseers for the medical and Sackler schools and a Tufts trustee emeritus, Michael Jaharis has been a passionate advocate for Tufts and for widening the university's sphere of influence in the global arena.

The vision for the campus center includes the creation of "learning communities," offering quiet study corners, lounges and small group classrooms. Additionally, the project includes construction of a simulation lab, where students can practice physical exams on mannequins programmed to talk or mimic a heart attack.

"This will completely change the student experience here," said Dean Rosenblatt. "The aim is to reinforce a sense of community. The campus center will offer our students a true home base. Many of our students commute each day from quite a distance. Now they will have a place to study, eat and congregate with each other. The outstanding design will provide great opportunities for interacting with faculty and fostering important mentoring relationships."

The gift is the latest from the Jaharis Family Foundation to transform Tufts' health sciences campus. The family provided the naming gift for the Jaharis Family Center on Harrison Avenue that opened in 2002.

The campus center and additional learning spaces will be located in the Arthur M. Sackler Center for Health Communications at 145 Harrison Ave. on the Boston campus. The clinical skills and medical simulation center will be at 35 Kneeland St. Construction and renovation is expected to begin immediately.