UCLA receives $10 million to launch Howard and Irene Levine Family Center for Movement Disorders
Friends and SupportersDonations totaling $10 million from longtime UCLA supporters Howard and Irene Levine and their family foundation will be used to establish the UCLA Howard and Irene Levine Family Center for Movement Disorders at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.
Movement disorders, a category of more than 30 neurological conditions causing abnormal body movements, affect approximately 40 million people each year. Perhaps best known is Parkinson’s disease, which affects 1 million Americans and more than 10 million people worldwide; the disease worsens over time, gradually robbing people of coordinated movement and impairing certain non-motor functions as well.
The Howard and Irene Levine Family Foundation will provide the resources for five new endowments in the department of neurology at the school of medicine: a permanent-appointment chair, three term-appointment chairs and a movement disorders research fund — all of which will support basic science research on Parkinson’s disease under the leadership of the director of the new Levine Center.
The research fund will also support a symposium on movement disorders featuring leaders in Parkinson’s disease research, with the inaugural event scheduled for March 25–26 at UCLA. (see sidebar)
“The visionary philanthropy of the Levine family will be a complete game changer in the field of movement disorders, to the benefit of patients across the country and around the world,” said Dr. John Mazziotta, vice chancellor for health sciences and CEO of UCLA Health. “UCLA is deeply honored to play a significant part in this process.”