On behalf of the College of Engineering, we are pleased to announce that Dr. Richard Woodcock has made a gift in the amount of $500,000 to the College of Engineering.
Referred to SDSU by a friend, he became involved with Rocket Project in 2017. Dr. Woodcock's love of adventure and space travel attracted him to Rocket Project. His first gift to Rocket Project was in 2017 for $50,000. Rocket Project had the goal to set the world record for altitude with a student designed and built liquid fueled rocket. Knowing that goal, Dr. Woodcock kept giving cash gifts that in four short years totaled $1 million. In addition to his financial giving, Dr. Woodcock is a frequent visitor to the Rocket Project lab on campus and to the rocket launch site in the Mojave Desert. With Dr. Woodcock's support, the students set the world record in February 2020 with "Lady Elizabeth”, the student-designed-built rocket named after Dr. Woodcock's late wife, Elizabeth Jackson. Building and designing rockets isn't easy and it's not cheap either. Rocket Project leadership and the College of Engineering have indicated multiple times that Dr. Woodcock's giving has been transformational. In late 2021 Dr. Woodcock expanded his giving to include engineering senior design projects and Aztec Electric Racing, giving both those efforts critically needed foundational support much like he did for Rocket Project.
Dr. Richard W. Woodcock is considered the world's foremost educational test developer and is one of the most prolific and influential figures in the field of applied psychological assessment. His Woodcock-Johnson series of tests for cognition, achievement, and reading are widely used in the U.S. and internationally. He is renowned for setting the standard for cognitive and achievement assessments worldwide as the author of such tests as the Woodcock–Johnson® III (WJ IIITM) Tests of Achievement, the WJ III Tests of Cognitive Abilities, the Batería III Woodcock–Muñoz®, the Dean–Woodcock™ Neuropsychological Battery, and the Woodcock–Muñoz Language Survey®—Revised.
He earned his doctorate from the University of Oregon with a dual major in statistics and psycho-education. He has published more than 135 professional books and articles. A lifelong career in education, Dr. Woodcock has been a teacher, school psychologist and special education administrator. At the age of 94 he continues to work and is actively involved in research.
If you happen to see Dr. Woodcock in the community, at a campus event (virtual event) or in the SDSU Rocket Lab, please feel free to express appreciation for his generosity.
If you or anyone else you know is interested in learning about ways to support the College of Engineering, please contact Kate Carinder, Senior Director of Development for the College of Engineering at [email protected].
