Riverside, Calif., April, 2000--Dorm life at La Sierra University is soon to get better--$1 million dollar better, to be exact.

A $1 million dollar gift was recently made to the La Sierra Residence Life Department. The money will go toward needed improvements in the campus residence halls, funding renovations for each of the campus' 330 dorm rooms.

"Of course a gift this size is an incredible answer to prayer," said Sue Curtis, La Sierra dean of students and director of residential life. "These donors had an obvious burden to improve the day-to-day lives of our students and they couldn't have chosen a more generous way," she said.

The substantial gift, which was donated by an alumni family that asked to remain anonymous, came in the form of stock options from a Fortune 500 company. The stock value at the time of the donation was approximately $750,000. At a later date, the donor will transfer ownership for $250,000 more in stock shares, bringing the total gift to $1 million.

Renovations will take place in all four of the campus residence halls, Angwin, Gladwin and South halls, in addition to Sierra Towers. The whole project is expected to take two years and initial work will begin on Angwin Hall and Sierra Towers, the principal women's and men's residence halls. The buildings were built in 1948 and 1968, respectively.

Physical improvements call for every room to be repainted, laid with new carpet, and outfitted with new furniture and window blinds. The donor also has expressed an interest in seeing redecorating and remodeling for the residence hall lobbies, as well.

Just over 40 percent of the university's 1,200 students live in the campus residence halls and residence life directors say the improvements should make this number rise. "You know how they said 'Build it and they will come?'" said Henes Guerpo, assistant dean of men. "In this case it's 'Make it nicer, and they will come.'"

Though all of the La Sierra residence halls are structurally sound, their interior shortcomings - particularly where rooms are concerned - were starting to prompt considerable student complaints and some parental concerns, Curtis said. Through the years, budgets provided for regular maintenance and some remodeling. But not enough, she said, to spare students from older desks, faded draperies and carpet with burnt-orange color schemes that seemed just fine in 1971.

The gift for residence hall improvements marks another in a series of million-dollar gifts that have come to La Sierra during the 1999-2000 school year. In December the university announced the receipt of $1 million to fund an endowed faculty chair in the School of Business and Management. Groundbreaking took place in March for a new addition and renovation for the School of Education building, a project that is being funded by a $1 million gift from businessman Chan Ying Fong.

In addition to these gifts, the La Sierra Advancement Office recently received a $1 million donation that will fund a Palm Springs branch of the La Sierra University World Museum of Natural History.

"Our goal at La Sierra is to educate our students for success and Christian service," said Larry Geraty, La Sierra president. "So it's not just rising enrollment that confirms that we're doing the right thing. It's also outside support from generous friends and alumni."

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