INSIDE PHILANTHROPY -- George Marcus is the co-founder of Marcus and Millichap Company, a real estate investment services firm. He is a trustee emeritus of the California State University Board of Trustees, serving from 1981 to 1989, and is a current member of the CSU Foundation’s Board of Governors. In 2012 he concluded a 12-year appointment as a regent of the University of California.
Judy is a former physical education teacher, the former board president of the Community Services Agency, and an active leader with the Humane Society Silicon Valley and Catholic Charities of Santa Clara County. Commenting on her gift to SF State, Judy said, “San Francisco State helped define our future and it is our hope that this gift will do the same for students and faculty in the College of Liberal and Creative Arts now and for many years to come.”
The couple’s gift suggests that no matter how intense STEM-mania gets, alumni understand the value of a liberal arts education and will continue to support schools that provide it. In fact, there’s a growing consensus across the donor community that the liberal arts can effectively complement the STEM model. Throw in traditional support for endowments and digitization projects, plus gifts earmarked for philosophy studies, and it becomes clear that the liberal arts funding space is more diverse and robust than one would initially suspect.
Photo by Gino de Grandis