Newcastle University

Giving to Newcastle

Gifts from Individuals and Companies in the USA

The University benefits from the support of an independent organisation, 'The USA Friends of the University of Newcastle upon Tyne.'

The Board of Directors of this organisation meets twice each year in New York to review philanthropic priorities for the organisation, and approves a number of projects which will benefit the University.

Individuals and organisations in the US may then take advantage of the full range of tax incentives available by making their gifts direct to the 'Friends' Organisation, which raises funds for these agreed programmes of activity. While the Board of Directors retains control and discretion concerning gifts to the University, they will certainly consider specific preferences of donors.

For more information and advice, please e-mail or write to:

US Friends of Newcastle University
Ms Tracey Readshaw
Administrator, US Friends
Development and Alumni Relations Office
Newcastle University
King's Gate
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE1 7RU
Tel: +44 (0) 191 222 5107

Mrs Jane Clubley
Director of Development
Tel: +44 (0) 191 222 3980

Mr Anthony Hutchings
President, US Friends

179 Harvard Avenue
Rockville Centre
New York 11570
USA

And please send cheques by post to our treasurer, Andrew McDonald:

Andrew McDonald
179 Harvard Avenue
Rockville Centre
New York
NY11570

Board of Directors:

Professor Terry Davies (MB BS 1971, MD 1978) – Honorary President
Terry is the Florence and Theodore Baumritter Professor of Medicine at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York, where he teaches Endocrinology and Metabolism.

He is an attending physician at the Mount Sinai Hospital, where he has a clinical practice, and is also the director of Mount Sinai's Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism at the James J. Peters Veterans Administration Medical Center. Terry is a former Editor-in-Chief of Thyroid, the American Thyroid Association’s (ATA) monthly journal, and is President of Thyroid Action Inc.

Andrew Heath (BA Economics 1960)
Now retired, Andrew was Director of Corporate Communications at Pfizer Inc, a multinational pharmaceutical firm.

Andrew is currently trustee of a foundation that donates music scholarships.

He is a member of a group representing major European landowners, and works with a hospital for immigrants in the New York area.

Sallie Locke (BA Ancient History 1995)
Sallie Locke joined Columbia Law School in 2000, where she is currently coordinator of Continuing Legal Education certificate programs. She previously worked for Public Information, a consultancy specializing in issues of public education, and on the The Charlotte Observer team that won the Pulitzer Prize for Meritorious Public Service.

Sallie is a member of the National Society of Colonial Dames and the Healthy Foundations Leadership Council of the New York Junior League. She volunteers weekly with The New York Foundling to lead arts activities for children aged four to ten years in the care of New York State.

Andy McDonald (MSc Applied Sciences 1973) - Treasurer
With a banking career spanning 30 years, Andy has recently joined Wells Fargo Bank. He was previously a Group Director and Senior Vice President at Signature Bank, and Managing Director at Schloss & Co., an actuarial and retirement benefits consulting company.

Having emigrated from England in 1981, he is also a graduate of the University of Aberystwyth. Andy has served as an associate trustee of the North Shore/LIJ Health System since 2002. He is also a board member for several organizations including the Long Island Philharmonic and Long Island's prestigious Advancement for Commerce, Industry and Technology (ACIT), a leading business organization on Long Island.

Dr Cinthi Pillai (MB BS 2006)
Cinthi works in New York City in Clinical Research at Jacobi Medical Centre, an affiliate of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and a member of the North Bronx Healthcare Network (NBHN). She obtained her BSc from New York University in Neural Science and Chemistry in 2000, and then moved to the UK to qualify as a doctor at Newcastle.

Cinthi then returned to the USA, where she worked under Nobel Laureate Dr Torsten Wiesel at the Rockefeller University. She has been involved in medical research projects in a variety of fields including plastic surgery, radiology, ophthalmology, cardiology, and infectious diseases.

Tara Owen-Smith (BA Classical Civilisation 1992)

Tara graduated from Newcastle University in 1992 with a BA in Classical Civilisation. After beginning her career in Financial Services at companies such as Bear Stearns International Ltd and Bloomberg LP, she is now the Managing Director of Livingstone Partners – a property investment company she co-founded with her brother and fellow Newcastle alumnus Fraser. Currently living in New York, Tara was a new addition to the US Board of Friends on 14 October 2011.