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In This Issue:
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The Columbia Campaign for Engineering
Armen Avanessians
The Columbia Campaign for Engineering holds the key to transforming engineering at Columbia, says Campaign chair Armen Avanessians ’83. “Education is the one avenue that can provide the tools for people to take their lives, our nation, and our world to the next level,” says Avanessians, “and Columbia trains leaders.” Avanessians, a managing director at Goldman Sachs, is one of those leaders, both professionally and as a Columbia volunteer. With co-vice chairs James M. Li ’68,’70,’76 and Alan M. Silberstein ’69, he is spearheading the effort to raise at least $100 million in new endowment to bring the best engineering and applied science students and faculty to Morningside Heights, and another $25 million to enhance centers and research programs. “Columbia SEAS helped me in countless ways,” says Avanessians, “but two immediately come to mind. First, by gaining exposure to a variety of disciplines, I learned how to apply scientific rigor to a range of problems. That preparation has proven invaluable in helping me tackle challenges throughout my career. Second, by studying in New York City, I was able to see the connections between engineering and finance and to establish contacts in both worlds. That ultimately helped ease my transition from Bell Laboratories to Goldman Sachs.”
 Students in the Class of 2011, the most selective in the history of the School, enjoy lunch in the shade before Convocation ceremonies, at which they were welcomed into the Columbia family by President Lee C. Bollinger and Deans Gerald Navratil of SEAS and Austin Quigley of Columbia College For the past decade, the School has been experiencing exceptional growth and success. Each year, it has attracted more and better qualified applicants for undergraduate and graduate study than ever before. More top students are choosing Columbia Engineering than ever. The school accepted only 18.7% of applicants for admission this fall, a new record in selectivity. SAT scores and other indices of their qualifications have never been more impressive: the average cumulative math/verbal SAT score for those admitted for the Class of 2011 was 1480. By endowing undergraduate scholarships, contributors to the Campaign can help ensure that the students Columbia chooses can also choose Columbia. That means that engineering will remain a ladder of opportunity for gifted students who otherwise could not choose the profession or choose Columbia.
 James M. Li
Campaign co-vice chair Jim Li, who has been Annual Fund chair for more than a decade, says “Columbia truly changed the course of my life. It gave me an excellent education, confidence in myself, and a Columbia legacy. It made things fall into place for me that would not have happened otherwise.” He and his wife, Elizabeth, have established an endowed scholarship. “I hope that alumni recognize the importance of Columbia Engineering to their lives and seriously consider creating an endowed scholarship to provide a Columbia SEAS education to future students, as previous generations may have done for them,” he said. Equally committed to Columbia is co-vice chair Alan Silberstein, who has maintained a strong connection with the School since graduation. “I left the engineering profession early in my career,” says Silberstein, “but I never left behind the analytical discipline and sense of perspective I acquired at Columbia. Studying at SEAS gave me a broader way of approaching the world and a true desire to make a difference.” Silberstein says, “One difference I can make is giving back to the School, both as a donor and as an alumni volunteer.”
 Alan Silberstein “My wife, Carol, and I feel privileged to have endowed the Alan and Carol Silberstein Professorship in Engineering and, in particular, that our gift supports the work of Professor Upmanu Lall, who is pioneering new methods to address the increasingly critical need to provide fresh water to people around the world. We believe strongly in the transformative ability of engineering to improve the quality of life on our planet, to solve problems and open up new possibilities, and to change individual lives. The Campaign invites us all to help set the stage for future growth at a school that is already setting the research agenda in key fields, expanding in global reach, and defining new modes of disciplinary and interdisciplinary education.” “In recent years, the School has risen dramatically in U.S. News & World Report rankings of ‘Best Engineering Schools,’ moving from below 30 in 1995 to a place in the top 20 in 2007,” said Avanessians. “With a successful Campaign for Engineering, we can begin to climb toward the single digit category.” University President Lee C. Bollinger has also strongly supported this campaign, recognizing the power of engineering to revolutionize our political, social, economic and environmental life. “Now more than ever, these students enjoy unimaginable opportunities to help people in every corner of the world in the transition to the global economy,” he said. “Because of the education they receive at Columbia, they emerge not only with a grounding in the core of what we think it means to be a learned citizen, but also as professionals dedicated to improving the lives of people everywhere. The Columbia Campaign for Engineering calls on us to invest in these students and the faculty that teach them and lead research forward. Through their hands and minds, we can touch the future.” The Columbia Campaign for Engineering will play a key part in Columbia Engineering’s growing global leadership. By building endowment for students, faculty and for interdisciplinary research centers, the Campaign looks to make the most of our Columbia context, multiplying the strengths of the School by the strengths of the University. As the University works at every level to enhance its global presence, the Engineering School is linked critically through the scope of its research, the international nature of its faculty, and the growth in financial aid that will make possible bringing in the best students from overseas. Every gift counts, says Avanessians, including gifts to the Annual Fund. If you would like more information about how you can be a part of The Columbia Campaign for Engineering, contact Alessandra Garber by e-mail at ag2091@columbia.edu or call her at 212-870-3241. Undergraduate and Graduate
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