SOURCE OF WEALTH: JDS-Uniphase Corporation
FUNDING AREAS: Education & Youth
OVERVIEW: Bruce Worster and his wife Susan do their grantmaking through the Susan & Bruce Worster Foundation. The couple has provided ongoing support to their mutual alma mater, the University of California at Santa Barbara. The Worster Foundation also supports higher education and arts and culture in California.
BACKGROUND: Bruce Worster received a B.S. in physics from Harvey Mudd College in 1964, a Ph.D. in physics from UCSB in 1971 and an MBA from Santa Clara University in 1977. Worster was a physicist at Hewlett-Packard and later moved to leadership roles at Measurex, Surface Science Instruments, Tencor Instruments and the Ultrapointe Corporation, where he was founder, CTO and president. He retired in 2001 as vice president from JDS-Uniphase Corporation, a leading supplier for the telecommunications industry.
ISSUES:
HIGHER EDUCATION: Through their foundation, the Worsters have provided ongoing support to the University of California at Santa Barbara. Among other projects, the Worster Foundation has endowed the Worster Chair in Experimental Physics. Other higher education grantees include Harvey Mudd College and UCLA, Occidental College and Wellesley College.
ARTS AND CUTLURE: The Worster Foundation’s arts and culture grantmaking has so far been limited to organizations operating in the state of California. Past grantees include the San Jose Museum of Art, the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History and the Santa Barbara Symphony.
LOOKING FORWARD: The Worster couple’s grantmaking via their foundation has supported only a few organizations, and has remained under $500,000 a year. It is unclear if they will have an increase in grantmaking.
CONTACT:
Susan & Bruce Worster Foundation
11271 Magdalena Rd.
Los Altos Hills, CA 94024