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New AIDS vaccine center hailed as another moon mission

E-mail | Print | Comments () Posted by Gideon Gil February 4, 2009 02:06 PM

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By Stephen Smith, Globe Staff

AIDS researchers and the leaders of three of the region’s research powerhouses this morning hailed a $100 million gift from a Cambridge technology magnate that will create an institute to jumpstart the search for an HIV vaccine.

And it was clear from the public remarks and private murmurings of a standing-room-only crowd at the swank Charles Hotel in Harvard Square that scientists and university presidents alike view the donation as a rare beacon of hope at a time when once-reliable contributors have seen their fortunes shrink.

Dr. Peter Slavin, president of Massachusetts General Hospital, repeatedly thanked Phillip Terrence Ragon and his wife Susan for their gift -- especially, he said, as philanthropic campaigns face unprecedented challenges.

The Phillip T. and Susan M. Ragon Institute aims to unite an army of doctors, engineers, and scientists at Mass. General, Harvard University, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the hunt for an AIDS vaccine -- but without some of the constraints of more risk-averse government funders.

Harvard President Drew Faust declared that the opening of the institute is akin to the Apollo missions to the moon. It was clear from the tenor of her remarks, and those from MIT President Susan Hockfield, that the announcement of such a generous gift afforded welcome respite from news of shrinking endowments and broke donors.

Even Harvard, holder of the world’s largest university endowment, has witnessed a substantial decline in the value of its institutional piggy bank.

The Ragons, Faust said, “have shown a level of understanding and daring that is rare in the world of philanthropy.”

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White Coat Notes covers the latest from the health care industry, hospitals, doctors offices, labs, insurers, and the corridors of government. Chelsea Conaboy previously covered health care for The Philadelphia Inquirer. Write her at cconaboy@boston.com. Follow her on Twitter: @cconaboy.

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