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      <P><STRONG><FONT size=5>PPIC Gets $1 Million Gift</FONT></STRONG></P>
      <P>Staff<BR>Central Valley Business Times</P>
      <DIV>06/18/2009</DIV>
      <DIV>&nbsp;</DIV>
      <DIV>The Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) says it has been 
      given a $1 million grant from the Donald Bren Foundation to support its 
      research and engagement in economic development, education, governance, 
      and public finance. <BR><BR>The gift will fund a fellows program in these 
      policy areas over the next five years. <BR><BR>PPIC has named economists 
      David Neumark and Julian Betts as its first “Bren Fellows.” <BR><BR>"At a 
      time when there is an urgent need for PPIC's work, the Donald Bren 
      Foundation's generous gift will significantly boost our efforts to address 
      the state's formidable challenges in these critical areas," says Mark 
      Baldassare, PPIC president and CEO. <BR><BR>The Donald Bren Foundation is 
      a private philanthropic organization chartered by Donald Bren, chairman of 
      the Irvine Company. He has endowed 50 professorships for distinguished 
      faculty at many universities, including the University of California, 
      where he has created more endowed chairs than any other individual donor. 
      <BR><BR>"PPIC is widely recognized for its independent, objective, 
      nonpartisan research on major issues facing the state," says Mr. Bren. 
      "We're pleased to support this important work at such a critical time for 
      California." <BR><BR>Mr. Neumark is a senior fellow at PPIC whose research 
      focuses on economic development at the state and local level. He is a 
      professor of economics at the University of California, Irvine, and a 
      research associate of the National Bureau of Economic Research. 
      <BR><BR>Mr. Betts, an adjunct fellow at PPIC since 1998, is an expert on 
      K-12 education. He is a professor of economics at the University of 
      California, San Diego, where he is chairman of the Department of 
      Economics. </DIV></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></BODY></HTML>
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