A 55-year-old Jewish immigrant from Poland–Arthur B. Belfer, president of the Belfer Foundation and chairman of the board and chief executive officer of the Belco Petroleum Corporation–who came to the United States penniless in 1939, today gave Yeshiva University $2,000,000 to develop its Graduate School of Science.
The gift by the Belfer Foundation will be used by the university to expand its graduate programs in mathematics and physics which were initiated in 1958. The university is naming the School in honor of Mr. Belfer in recognition of his generosity and leadership.
In making the contribution, Mr. Belfer said: “I can think of no finer way to express my gratitude to this country than through higher education. President Kennedy and the highest governmental officials have stressed many times over the great need for training more and better scientists if the free world is to remain free. I am grateful that I have been afforded the opportunity to advance this national goal.”
Mr. Belfer is vice-president of the Sutton Place Synagogue. He is active in numerous philanthropic and communal activities including the United Jewish Appeal, Federation of Jewish Philanthropies, Maimonides Hospital, University of Wyoming, where he sponsors a geology and engineering scholarship program, United Hospital Fund, and the Prospect Park Jewish Center. He has been a member of Yeshiva University’s President’s Council since 1959.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
