This list highlights UCLA buildings and spaces named in honor of individuals. The UCLA Philanthropic and Sponsorship Naming Committee is a separate committee that oversees the naming of buildings and spaces resulting from philanthropic gifts.
Locations on Westwood campus
Ackerman Union Building: Named in honor of William Coit Ackerman, a UCLA graduate, faculty member and decorated tennis coach who served as executive director of the Associated Students UCLA (ASUCLA) from 1933-1967. Ackerman coached the Bruins to 10 Pacific Coast Conference titles and UCLA’s first NCAA championship (men’s tennis, 1950).
Ashe Student Health and Wellness Center: Named in honor of UCLA alumnus, activist and tennis champion Arthur Ashe, who was the first African American man to win Wimbledon and the U.S. Open and the first African American to be named No. 1 in the world. Off the court, Ashe fought against racial segregation in South Africa, worked to provide tennis opportunities for urban youth and raised awareness of the growing AIDS crisis in the U.S.
Boelter Hall: Named in honor of Llewellyn M.K. Boelter, a UC Berkeley graduate who taught engineering for more than 20 years. Boelter joined UCLA to organize and lead the College of Engineering from 1944 until his retirement in 1965 and was a renowned researcher in the fields of heat transfer and thermodynamics (Dittus-Boelter equation).
Boyer Hall: Named in honor of Paul D. Boyer, a Nobel Prize-winning chemistry and biochemistry professor (1997) and founding director of the UCLA Molecular Biology Institute.
Bradley Hall: Named in honor of UCLA alumnus, politician, athlete, police office and lawyer Thomas Bradley, who served as L.A.’s first African American mayor and the city’s longest-serving mayor¾ from 1973-1993.
Bridges Theater: Named in honor of James Bridges, one of the first faculty members of the division of film/television of the department of theater arts and later a distinguished professional screenwriter.
Bunche Hall: Named in honor of UCLA alumnus Ralph Bunche, who won the 1950 Nobel Peace Prize as a mediator in the Middle East and served as United Nations under-secretary-general from 1946-1971.
Campbell Hall: Named in honor of Lily Bess Campbell, an eminent Shakespearean authority who taught at UCLA from 1922 until her retirement in 1950. Campbell held a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1951, received an Achievement Award from the American Association of University Women in 1960 and was named Woman of the Year by the Los Angeles Times in 1962.
Carnesale Commons: Named in honor of Robin and Albert Carnesale, who served as chancellor from 1997-2006, holds professorial appointments in UCLA’s School of Public Affairs and Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science. Among other things, Robin Carnesale, founder of RGA, Inc., has served on the advisory boards of many UCLA organizations, including the UCLA Institute for Society and Genetics, Nazarian Center for Israel Studies, Friends of Jazz, Women and Philanthropy and Royce Center Circle.
Cornell Grove: Named in honor of Ralph Cornell, the longtime landscape consulting architect for the Westwood campus, who established the design of most of the plazas and walkways. Cornell designed projects as far afield as Cairo and Manila and is especially remembered for the public gardens he designed in Southern California.
Darling Biomedical Library: Named in honor of Louise Darling, who was named founding director of the UCLA Biomedical Library in 1947 and served in this role until 1978.
De Neve Hall/De Neve Plaza: Named in honor of Felipe de Neve, who, as the third Spanish governor of Alta California, organized the original group of 14 families (44 individuals) from San Gabriel Misson on Sept. 4, 1781, to establish the El Pueblo de Nuestra Señora la Reina de los Ángeles de Porciúncula; De Neve is considered the founder of the modern city of Los Angeles.
Dickson Court / Dickson Plaza: Named in honor of Edward Dickson, considered to be UCLA’s founder. Dickson was the first individual from Southern California appointed to the University of California Board of Regents in 1912 and led the effort to establish a second campus of the university in the greater Los Angeles area. His 43-year tenure as a member of the Board of Regents has never been exceeded.
Dodd Hall: Named in honor of Paul A. Dodd, who joined the UCLA Department of Economics in 1928 and became the founding director of the Institute of Industrial Relations (now the Institute of Labor and Employment) in 1945. Dodd also served as dean of the UCLA College of Letters and Science from 1946-1961 and was one of the three members of the Administrative Committee that served as the executive office for UCLA in 1950-1952 and 1958 -1959.
Drake Track and Field Stadium: Named in honor of Bruin alumnus Elvin C. Drake, who spent more than 60 years at UCLA as a student-athlete, track coach and head trainer for athletic teams from 1942-1972. Under Drake’s leadership, UCLA won its first track and field title, the 1956 NCAA national outdoor championship.
Dykstra Hall: Named in honor of political science professor Clarence Addison Dykstra, who, as UCLA provost and vice president from 1945-1950, initiated the planning for the eventual construction of the on-campus student housing complex in the northwest sector of the campus.
Fernald Child Development Center: Named in honor of Grace Maxwell Fernald, who established the center in 1921 as a research and training center for the study, diagnosis and treatment of learning disorders in children.
Franz Hall: Named in honor of psychologist Shepherd Ivory Franz, professor, inaugural chair of the UCLA Department of Psychology and co-founder of the graduate education division. Franz, who also served as president of the American Psychological Association, contributed research to the concepts of neuroplasticity, afterimages and cerebral localization.
Freud Playhouse: Named in honor of Ralph Freud, who accepted a lectureship in UCLA’s English department in 1938 and subsequently established UCLA’s theater arts department.
Haines Hall: Named in honor of Charles Grove Haines, a UCLA political science faculty member from 1925-1948, an authority on the American judiciary and author of six volumes on the proceedings of the U.S Supreme Court.
Hedrick Hall / Hedrick Summit Residence Hall: Named in honor of Earle Raymond Hedrick, a UCLA mathematics professor who served for 13 years before becoming vice president and provost from 1937-1943.
Hitch Suites: Named in honor of Charles Hitch, a member of the department of economics at UCLA who served as president of the University of California from 1968-1975, and Nancy Hitch.
Kinsey Pavilion: Named in honor of Edgar Lee Kinsey, a professor of physics and former department chair who taught at UCLA from 1928-1961. Kinsey was nationally known in the field of spectroscopy and for important contributions to the development of transistors.
Kneller House: Named in honor of George F. Kneller, professor emeritus of education and anthropology.
Knudsen Hall: Named in honor of Vern Oliver Knudsen, a renowned authority in acoustical physics who joined UCLA as a professor in 1922 and moved through the ranks of department chair, dean of graduate studies, a member of the Administrative Committee in 1950-1952 and 1958-1959 and then chancellor in 1959-1960.
Lu Valle Commons: Named in honor of UCLA alumnus and groundbreaking chemist James “Jimmy” Lu Valle, who co-founded the UCLA Graduate Students Association and captured a bronze medal in the 400m at the Berlin Olympic Games in 1936.
Macgowan Hall: Named in honor of journalist, film critic and Oscar-winning producer Kenneth Macgowan, who taught at UCLA from 1946 -1956 and served as the first chair of the UCLA Department of Theater Arts.
Mathias Botanical Garden: Named in honor of Mildred Mathias, who joined the UCLA Department of Botany in 1947 as a specialist in California horticulture and who served as director of the UCLA Botanical Garden from 1956-1974.
McClure Stage (Westwood Plaza): Named for Charles McClure, dean of student activities in the 1960s who authored the first campus regulations regarding “time, place and manner”).
Melnitz Hall: Named in honor of UCLA graduate William Melnitz, a notable theatrical authority, educator and author who was named dean of the former College of Fine Arts in 1961.
Meyerhoff Park: Not officially named by the University, this “free speech” lawn area next to Kerckhoff Hall received this label in recognition of activist and professor Hans Meyerhoff, a beloved member of the faculty of the department of philosophy, following his death in an automobile accident on Sunset Blvd., near the campus.
Moore Hall: Named in honor of Ernest Carroll Moore, the first person to head UCLA as the director of the “Southern Branch: of the University of California in 1919.
Morgan Center: Named in honor of tennis player, coach and UCLA graduate J.D. Morgan, who played varsity tennis from 1938-1941 and served as the school’s head tennis coach from 1949-1966 (eight NCAA Men’s Tennis Championships) and as UCLA’s athletic director from 1963- 1979 (30 NCAA championships, including 10 NCAA men’s basketball titles.)
Murphy Hall / Murphy Sculpture Garden: Named in honor of Franklin D. Murphy, a physician who served as UCLA chancellor from 1960 to 1968.
Perloff Hall: Named in honor of Harvey S. Perloff, dean of the former Graduate School of Architecture and Urban Planning from 1968-1973.
Portola Plaza: Named in honor of Gaspar de Portolá, the Spanish military officer who led the expedition that blazed the first trail from the pueblo in San Diego to the San Francisco Bay area in 1769, starting the Spanish colonization of Alta California that would continue for a half century, ending in 1821.
Powell Library: Names in honor of Lawrence Clark Powell, who joined the library staff in 1938 and served as UCLA’s second university librarian from 1944-1961. In 1959, he became the founding dean of the School of Library Science.
Rieber Hall / Rieber Terrace / Rieber Vista: Named in honor of Charles Henry Rieber, a psychology professor who served and UCLA’s first dean of the College of Letters and Science from 1921-1936.
Rolfe Hall: Named in honor of Franklin P. Rolfe, who taught English at UCLA for 29 years, chaired the English department and humanities division and served as dean of the College of Arts and Sciences from 1947-1961.
Royce Hall / Royce Drive: Named in honor of Josiah Royce, a graduate of UC Berkeley who is remembered as one of the great American proponents of absolute idealism. Considered one of the great philosophical thinkers of his time, Royce published 13 books, including a history of California and 200 articles and reviews.
Saxon Suites: Named in honor of Shirley and David S. Saxon. David Saxon was a longtime member of the UCLA physics department and later served as dean of physical sciences of UCLA, executive vice chancellor and provost of UCLA and President of the University of California from 1975-1983.
Schoenberg Music Building / Schoenberg Hall: Named in honor of famed composer Arnold Schoenberg, a UCLA music faculty member from 1936-1944. Using a 12-tone scale, his complex compositions earned him a place in the world’s musical literature.
Slichter Hall: Named in honor of Louis Byrne Slichter, professor of geophysics and founding director of UCLA’s Institute of Geophysics from 1947-1962.
Spaulding Field: Named in honor of William H. Spaulding, who served as UCLA’s first head football coach from 1925-1938 and UCLA athletic director until 1947.
Sproul Hall: Named in honor of Ida and Robert Gordon Sproul, who served as president of the University of California from 1930-1958 while also assuming the duties of UCLA provost from 1942-1945.
Seeds Campus Lab School: Named in honor of Corinne A. Seeds, principal at University Elementary Schools (later renamed the UCLA Lab School) from 1925-1957. Seeds helped to create the social studies framework for the California State Department of Education.
Trueblood Auditorium: Named in honor of Kenneth Trueblood, longtime member of the chemistry department faculty who served as dean of the College of Letters and Science from 1971-1974.
(John) Wooden Center: Named in honor of legendary basketball coach John Wooden, who coached at UCLA from 1948-1975 and led the Bruins to 10 NCAA national titles in 12 years. Wooden was the first to be inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame as both a player and coach. Wooden’s philosophy of life is expressed in his “Pyramid of Success.”
(Nell and John) Wooden Court: Named in honor of coach Nell and John Wooden.
(Charles E.) Young Drive/Charles Young Salon/Charles Young Research Library/Charles Young Home Team Locker Room-Rose Bowl: The street naming and salon naming (in Kerckhoff Hall) are named in honor of Charles E. Young, who served as chancellor of UCLA from 1968-1997 after serving in various capacities under Chancellor Franklin Murphy. The Young Research Library is named in connection with a donor-directed request. (The City of Pasadena also named the home team locker room at the Rose Bowl stadium [owned by the city of Pasadena] in recognition of his decision in 1982 to relocate the home field of the UCLA football program to the Rose Bowl from its previous location (1929-1981) at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, adjacent to the USC campus.)
(Sue) Young Rose Garden: This landscaped area as the southeast corner of Haines Hall, just north of the (Gimbel) flagpole, is named in honor of Sue Young in recognition of her 29 years as first lady of UCLA.
(William G.) Young Hall: Named in honor of William Gould Young, who joined the department of chemistry at UCLA in 1930, then served as dean of physical sciences from 1948-1957 and vice chancellor for physical planning from 1957-1970, overseeing a major period of expansion of the physical plant of the Westwood campus.
Not located on the Westwood campus
(Terry) Donahue Pavilion-Rose Bowl Stadium: Named by the City of Pasadena for Terry Donahue, who served as head football coach at UCLA from 1976-1995. This facility is located on the west side of the Rose Bowl stadium, which is owned by the City of Pasadena. The Rose Bowl stadium has been the home field of UCLA football since 1982 under a series of lease agreements that now extend through 2043.
UCLA James Lawson, Jr. Worker Justice Center: Named in honor of civil rights icon Reverend James Lawson, Jr., a lifelong proponent and teacher of nonviolent activism and UCLA Labor Center faculty member for nearly 25 years. This building is located in the Westlake district of central Los Angeles.
(Jackie) Robinson Stadium: Named for Jackie Robinson, the only UCLA student-athlete in history to letter in four sports – baseball, football, basketball and track. Following his years at UCLA, Robinson broke the color barrier in baseball, becoming the first African American to play major league baseball when he joined the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947. This stadium is located on property leased from the U.S. Veterans Administration Center, approximately one mile west of the Westwood campus.
Others
Warren Hall: This building, now demolished, was named for Stafford Warren, founding dean of the UCLA School of Medicine and one of the two individuals (the other being Dr. Elmer Belt) responsible for UCLA’s acquisition from the U.S. government in 1947 of the 36-acres at the intersection of Wilshire Blvd. and Veteran Avenue.