Fullerton : Gerontology Center to Be Named for Key Donor

The new Cal State Fullerton Gerontology Center, scheduled for construction in June, will be named in honor of a key donor, Charles L. Ruby, and his late wife, Rachael E. Ruby, university President Jewel Plummer Cobb announced.

It is the first time in the university’s history that community residents will have a campus building named in their honor, Cobb said. She noted that naming the building for the Rubys has already been approved by the California State University Board of Trustees.

Charles Ruby was on the business law faculty of Fullerton College for 37 years before retiring in 1966. In 1979, he and his wife became founding members of the Continuing Learning Experience, the group that spearheaded the private fund drive to build the Gerontology Center.

Ruby made the initial contribution of $100,000 in December, 1980, and in December, 1985, he gave a capstone gift of an additional $150,000, ensuring that the private fund drive would reach its cash goal of $1.86 million. His has been the largest combined contribution in the fund drive, according to the university.

In praising Ruby and his late wife, Cobb said: “As a strong force in the educational and civic advancement of Orange County, Dr. Ruby stands out as a pioneer in the transformation of what once was a rural area with limited educational opportunities to what today is an increasingly urbanized area with a multitude of schools, colleges and universities--both public and private. Mrs. Ruby was a warm, caring individual with a deep interest in education.”