The Undergraduate Writing Center received a $6 million donation from alumnus Kwame J. Granderson on May 19, allowing the center to continue its operations for years to come.
The writing center is a free resource that operates through one-on-one student appointments – virtually and in person – at Powell Library, Rieber Hall and the UCLA Transfer Center. Students meet with peer learning facilitators, who are undergraduate students trained to provide writing feedback in a variety of disciplines.
Peer learning facilitators faced hiring delays during the 2025-26 academic year because the center’s yearly budget had not yet been solidified, said Gensen DeLeon, a third-year history student.
Christine Holten, the director of Writing Programs and former director of the Writing Center, said she had to request financial support every year from the Division of Undergraduate Education, UCLA Residential Life and the central university budget.
However, now that the center has a secure source of funding, Writing Center director Tara Prescott-Johnson said she can direct more time and energy to supporting students.
The endowment will help the writing center offer assistance in Spanish and expand hours to meet student demand, Prescott-Johnson said.
“Every dollar will go toward helping students, which happens because it’s a human-to-human model,” Holten said.
Knowing the donation will sustain the writing center for future students was an enormous relief, Prescott-Johnson said.
Other academic support programs – including the Academic Advancement Program and the First Year Scholars Program – have paused their initiatives in response to budget cuts to the Division of Undergraduate Education.
[Related: UCLA First Year Scholars Program goes on hiatus after years of denied funding]
The university was projected to generate a $220 million budget deficit for the 2025-26 fiscal year, interim Chief Financial Officer Reem Hanna-Harwell announced in a March 26 campuswide email.
The estimate came weeks after Stephen Agostini, the university’s former CFO, alleged to the Daily Bruin that UCLA had an annual projected deficit of $425 million because of financial mismanagement. However, Hanna-Harwell said in the March 26 email that previous estimates included spending requests that had not yet been approved.
[Related: Interim CFO says UCLA’s budget deficit is markedly lower than previous estimates]
DeLeon said she saw her work as a PLF help students build confidence in their writing.
Lily Palmer, a second-year physics student, said the Writing Center is also helping ensure that students do not depend on artificial intelligence for writing assistance.
“I really hope to see for so many more generations of Bruins have the writing center because I’ve seen it impact students’ lives and make them more confident,” DeLeon said.
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