Hebrew U to rename Mt. Scopus campus for John Paulson after record $250M donation

The Hebrew University of Jerusalem has received its largest donation ever, with the school on Saturday night announcing a massive $250 million gift from American investor and philanthropist John Paulson.

In recognition, Hebrew University will rename its Mount Scopus campus the Alina and John Paulson Campus.

The gift builds on the Paulson Family Foundation’s previous support for the university, which includes prior donations totalling $46 million. Those have supported Hebrew University’s engineering and computer science infrastructure, including the Paulson Bar-El Building for Computer Science & Engineering and the John Paulson Building for Electrical Engineering on the Edmond J. Safra Campus.

The latest donation will support the development of a faculty of engineering, the expansion of the university’s medical and biomedical research, trauma and post-trauma recovery initiatives, as well as the establishment of a think tank focused on translating academic expertise into public impact, the university said in a statement.

Paulson said the donation was intended to strengthen the university’s academics and demonstrate international solidarity with Israel.

“Israel, a country of only 10 million people, has astounded the world with its scientific and technological prowess,” Paulson said in a statement. “As Israel’s leading university, Hebrew University has provided top-tier higher education to generations of students.”

He noted that the university has registered more than 10,750 patents and earned major international distinctions, including 10 Nobel Prizes, two Turing Awards and a Fields Medal.

“This gift will ensure that Hebrew University has the resources to meet the high demand for advanced education well into the future,” he said.

Paulson also described the contribution as a statement of support for Israel at a time of continuing security challenges.

“If there was ever a time to step up and support the country and its institutions, this would be it,” he said.

The gift comes as the university, which was cofounded by Albert Einstein and formally opened in 1925, looks to expand in its second century of existence. The school has campuses at Mount Scopus, Givat Ram and Ein Kerem in Jerusalem, as well as satellite campuses in Rehovot, Beit Dagan, and Eilat. It is generally considered the best university in Israel and ranked 89th globally in the 2026 Shanghai Ranking of the top schools in the world.

For its 100-year anniversary, Hebrew University raised $1 billion over a seven-year campaign, it recently said. Other top donors include Steven Lavin’s Sheba Foundation, the Mandel Foundation, the Saul Brandman Foundation, and the Edmond de Rothschild Foundation.

The key goals of Paulson’s donation are the creation of a new faculty of engineering and bringing engineering and computer science into closer collaboration with medicine and the life sciences. The investment will help strengthen Israel’s innovation economy and support research addressing technological and societal challenges, the university said.

The gift will also expand the Hebrew University’s medical and biomedical enterprise, including its developing model for medical education. The aim is to strengthen research and educational infrastructure while contributing to Israel’s long-term healthcare capabilities.

Another portion will support research into trauma and post-trauma recovery, an area of particular national importance following the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, attack and the subsequent war, the university said. It also plans to establish a new think tank to connect academic research with pressing public needs in Israel and beyond.

Paulson, a hedge fund manager who has been called “one of the most prominent names in high finance,” leads New York-based Paulson & Co., the investment management firm he founded in 1994. He earned much of his fortune in 2007, when he used credit default swaps to bet against the US subprime mortgage lending market before it crashed. Forbes currently estimates his fortune at $11.2 billion.