More than $10 million in recent gifts will help the University of Oregon recruit and retain outstanding faculty members. The funds will be critical in the university’s efforts to replace the wave of top professors expected to retire over the next 10 years.

UO President Dave Frohnmayer announced a $1 million gift from Abbott and Laura Keller during an event on October 26. Abbott Keller (left) is cofounder and chief investment officer of Kestrel Investment Management Corp., in San Mateo, Calif. The Keller gift is for a distinguished scholar award and two faculty fellowships in the Lundquist College of Business Department of Finance. Frohnmayer also announced a $5.2 million gift from an anonymous donor which will be used to create the Fund for Faculty Excellence. Rounding out the event was news of a $4 million contribution from the estate of Haya Wallace, widow of the late news magazine journalist James Wallace, for an endowed chair in writing and reporting in the School of Journalism and Communication and for support of faculty excellence.

“Private gifts like these will guarantee that we can compete on an equal footing with other top universities vying for the next generation of outstanding professors,” Frohnmayer said. “This is a crucial investment in the future quality of education we offer our students.”

“Faculty support gifts are essential to the University of Oregon’s future,” according to Senior Vice President and Provost Linda Brady. “During the next decade, more than 50 percent of our faculty will reach retirement age. This is a national trend that will create fierce competition among research universities for the next generation of faculty. Faculty support gifts will enhance our success in the recruitment and retention of the very best faculty in an increasingly competitive marketplace.”

Brady said the Fund for Faculty Excellence will initially support five-year awards of $5,000 to $15,000 per year to faculty members deemed vulnerable to recruitment by other top institutions. Criteria for selecting award recipients will include “national and international standing in the field and contribution to strategic and significant areas of research and scholarship at the University of Oregon.”

“Our goal will be to grow this fund dramatically over the next several years,” said Brady.” It will be a key to keeping our best faculty.”

Brady noted that faculty salaries at the university average 81 percent of salaries at peer institutions. “The most significant gaps are at the rank of professor, generally the most senior, accomplished, and nationally and internationally recognized faculty at the University of Oregon,” she said.

The $10.2 million in faculty support gifts will count toward Campaign Oregon: Transforming Lives, the University of Oregon’s $600 million fundraising campaign that has raised $440.9 million to date. Of that total, $48.3 million has been for faculty support, including 30 new endowed chairs and professorships.