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UNCG GETS $1 MILLION GIFT
FOR NEW SCIENCE BUILDING

GREENSBORO - A fund to purchase equipment for a new science building at The University of North Carolina at Greensboro has been established with a $1 million contribution from William Pratt, chairman and chief technical officer of Greensboro-based RF Micro Devices, Inc.

Pratt's gift will be part of a science building equipment fund with proceeds used for the proposed $45.9 million science building at UNCG. The building has been designed, with construction to start as soon as funds are available. Although the state will provide construction funding and some equipment monies, if UNCG is to have a state-of-the-art facility, it will have to secure outside equipment funds. Equipping such a facility is estimated to cost $5.4 million. The state will commit approximately $1 million.

"I know that for UNCG to be a key player in the local economy, we must have the strength in sciences," said UNCG Chancellor Patricia Sullivan. "Our dated and inadequate current science building is a major factor in our inability to meet that challenge."

Having state-of-the-art science facilities will enhance teaching and research at UNCG and thereby impact the local community, Sullivan said.

"Part of our mission at UNCG is to provide a link from this University to the Piedmont Triad," Sullivan said. "This gift is further evidence of our work in this direction."

Pratt said he is pleased to be able to participate in the development of UNCG and especially to helping to further science education in Greensboro.

“Scientific education needs constant updating and I know that this gift will help UNCG to give its students a first-rate education in the sciences,” Pratt said.

Triangle Business Journal recently named RF Micro Devices the states fastest-growing technology company and the accounting firm of Deloitte & Touche named RF Micro Devices one of the states top 50 Technology Companies. The company, with about 800 local employees, is a leading provider of microchips for cellular telephones and other wireless communication devices.

In September, RF Micro Devices broke ground for a new $200 million microchip plant in Greensboro.

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