John Paulson Gives Record $250 Million to Hebrew University

American investor John Paulson has committed $250 million to the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, securing the largest donation in the institution’s 101-year history. The university confirmed the gift on Saturday night, announcing that its Mount Scopus campus will be renamed the Alina and John Paulson Campus in recognition of the contribution.

A Strategic Expansion of Research Infrastructure

The funds are earmarked for four core institutional objectives. The university plans to establish a new Faculty of Engineering, designed to integrate computer science, medicine, and the life sciences. Beyond the new faculty, the donation supports the expansion of medical and biomedical programs, the scaling of a new medical education model, and research initiatives focused on trauma and post-trauma recovery.

The university also intends to launch a think tank to translate academic research into public policy. This development arrives as the institution, co-founded by Albert Einstein and opened in 1925, begins its second century of operation.

Solidarity and Global Academic Standing

Paulson, who founded the hedge fund Paulson & Co. in 1994, framed the donation as a gesture of international solidarity. “If there was ever a time to step up and support the country and its institutions, this would be it,” Paulson said in a statement provided to eJewishPhilanthropy.

He described the gift as a strategic investment in an institution that produces research on par with elite global schools at a lower relative cost. The university currently holds more than 10,750 patents and counts 10 Nobel laureates among its affiliates.

Ranking Among Historical Philanthropic Gifts

This $250 million contribution stands as the third-largest individual gift ever awarded to an Israeli university. It trails a $400 million bequest to Ben-Gurion University of the Negev and a $260 million anonymous donation to Bar-Ilan University, according to eJewishPhilanthropy.

While this marks Paulson’s largest gift to an Israeli institution, it follows previous donations totaling $46 million to Hebrew University, which funded the Paulson Bar-El Building for Computer Science & Engineering and the John Paulson Building for Electrical Engineering. These prior investments bring his total support for the school to nearly $300 million. For context, Paulson’s largest historical philanthropic commitment remains his 2015 gift of $400 million to Harvard University’s School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.

Addressing National Urgency and Future Growth

The university identified trauma and post-trauma recovery as an area of urgent national importance following the October 7, 2023, attack and the subsequent ongoing war. The funding aims to bolster the school’s capacity to address these societal challenges through dedicated research.

The donation follows a successful seven-year campaign that raised $1 billion to mark the university’s centennial anniversary. University president Tamir Sheafer described the gift as a signal to other global donors regarding the enduring impact of supporting Israeli academic infrastructure during periods of security challenges. Earlier in the same week, philanthropist Steven H. Lavin pledged $30 million to the university to increase the number of students the school can train within its medical programs.