Gilbert family’s gift will fund 100 CLU scholarships
A $2.5 million gift from the TOLD Foundation will provide California Lutheran University with roughly 100 scholarships to low-income and moderate-income students over the next eight years.
The gift is the largest non-estate gift CLU has received for scholarships, according to a Sept. 8 statement from the university. Called the Rod Gilbert Achievement Scholarships, the program recognizes the growing diversity at the Thousand Oaks campus, which has been designated a Hispanic Serving Institution.
“This generous donation will help us keep the doors wide open to high-achieving students from all backgrounds,” Cal Lutheran President Lori E. Varlotta said in the university’s news release. “We are fortunate to have the foundation as a long and loyal partner that supports our mission to educate the next generation of global leaders.”
Some 60% of undergraduates at CLU received need-based financial aid from federal or state sources. The annual grants will range from $2,500 to $15,000 and the scholarships are named for TOLD Foundation President Rod Gilbert, a member of the CLU Board of Regents.
Created in 2011 by Rod Gilbert’s parents, the late Jack and Carol Gilbert, the TOLD Foundation has a long history of donating to CLU programs.
Jack Gilbert — the founder of Thousand Oaks Land Development Company, later TOLD — was a longtime developer and asset manager in Ventura County, and is a member of the Business Times Hall of Fame. The family’s $5 million gift provided substantial funding for the construction of the Gilbert Sports and Fitness Center, which opened in 2006 at the Thousand Oaks campus.
