A Name to Celebrate Our History and Define Our Future

On June 9 of last year, President Emerita Ruth V. Watkins, Utah Governor Spencer Cox, and I announced a landmark gift of $110 million for the University of Utah School of Medicine from the George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Foundation and the Nora Eccles Treadwell Foundation.

This momentous act of generosity is singular for its scope and size, but it is not in isolation. For decades, the Eccles foundations have offered visionary leadership and support that has indisputably transformed our health sciences—and indeed our entire university—into the center of excellence it is today.

In honor of those foundational, multi-generational gifts, we announced that our school will bear a new name: The Spencer Fox Eccles School of Medicine at University of Utah.

The journey to this moment began 50 years ago when we opened the doors to the Spencer S. Eccles Health Sciences Library, made possible by the elder Eccles and family. A decade later, George S. Eccles led the $10 million campaign to construct University of Utah Hospital. These gifts launched an era of unprecedented investment in the University of Utah. Over the last five decades, hundreds of philanthropic projects have gone to support libraries, hospitals, research centers, professorships, scholarships, and much more. The names George, Dolores, Nora, Emma, Marriner, Spencer, and Cleone are familiar to every person who benefits from the buildings, spaces, and programs that would either not exist or function as they do without their philanthropic support. The Eccles have come to be identified with healing, discovery, compassion, excellence, and gratitude.

Over the decades, medical education has advanced significantly as new discoveries and technologies have emerged. At the same time, there is a growing need for quality health care. The rapid population growth of our state means that we need more physicians and advanced practitioners, particularly in rural areas. We face startling new health challenges, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, which has made the need for trained health care professionals more evident than ever.

The Eccles foundations undertand this, and decided to address these challenges with bold action. When we articulated our plans, Spencer Eccles returned to tell us that he thought we could be bolder. The number of $110 million was more than what the university had contemplated. It represents Spence’s humility and his legacy of leadership at First Security Bank of “Giving 110%.”

The number of $110 million was more than what the university had contemplated. It represents Spence’s humility and his legacy of leadership at First Security Bank of “Giving 110%.”

Their gift includes $40 million for the medical school endowment, which will enrich student scholarships, recruit highest-caliber faculty, and innovate medical education programs; $40 million for research, focused on cardiovascular science and heart disease; and $30 million for our new, state-of-the-art School of Medicine building. These resources will allow the School of Medicine to develop innovations in health care delivery (especially for rural and underserved populations), advance teaching models and timelines, and, eventually, make future increases in the size of the medical school class possible.

You need only to peruse this issue of UtahMed to see a glimpse of our history and our exciting future. Learn how the Spencer S. Eccles Health Sciences Library transformed our education and celebrate five decades of our nationally ranked Physician Assistant Program. Discover how our teams are working with COVID patients with lasting symptoms. See how you—our distinguished graduates—pursue their passions in medicine and beyond. Meet the remarkable students who will transform the future of health.

Then learn about the remarkable man who has helped to unlock our next chapter—Spencer Fox Eccles.

This is more than a new name. This moment represents a turning point for the school. We will pursue disease-breaking research that will improve care and educate new generations of health care professionals. In turn, they will extend life expectancy, restore health, and enhance quality of life for Utahns and citizens throughout the Mountain West, nation, and world.

The Spencer Fox Eccles School of Medicine at University of Utah will join the ranks of the nation’s preeminent named institutions.

We will not just adapt to the future of medicine—we will define it.

Michael Good, MD

Dean, Spencer Fox Eccles School of Medicine

CEO, University of Utah Health

Senior vice president of health sciences