Alumna and scholarship recipient Precious Ward will speak at the upcoming Scholarship Benefit Dinner about the important role individual contributions play in the education of UCSC students. The February 9 celebration is dedicated to making the dream of higher education a reality for all students.
The keynote speaker at the event will be Emmy Award-winning actress and UCSC alumna Camryn Manheim.
The campus community is invited to the Saturday event, which will take place at 6 p.m. at UCSC's University Center.
Now in its fifth year, UCSC's benefit dinner has become an important fundraising event providing undergraduate scholarships, internships, and research opportunities, as well as graduate fellowships. Many scholarship and fellowship recipients are students who might not otherwise be able to attend UCSC.
The goal this year is to raise $200,000. For the first time, donors have provided a matching gift: Hierarchical Systems Research Foundation and an alumni donor committed $25,000 to match first-time donations and increased gifts for undergraduate scholarships.
Scholarship recipient Ward graduated from Oakes College in 2006 with a bachelor's degree in business management economics and a minor in theater arts. She attends the Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service at New York University, where she is working on a master's in nonprofit management.
Manheim, a graduate of Porter College in 1984, played defense attorney Eleanor Frutt on ABC's Emmy Award-winning drama "The Practice." In 1998, she won an Emmy Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series.
She was named one of the "Most Intriguing People of the Year" by People magazine and one of the "Most Fascinating Women of the Year" by Ladies' Home Journal.
The dinner, expected to attract 300 attendees, draws campus and community members as well as university leadership, UC Santa Cruz Foundation trustees, elected officials, students, alumni, and regional leaders.
Individuals may purchase tickets to the dinner for $200, or may sponsor a table for $5,000 and up. RSVPs are due by January 25. For more information, call the UC Santa Cruz Special Events Office at (831) 459-5003 or visit the Scholarship Benefit dinner web site.
