California State University, Northridge has received a $10 million pledge from Curb Records chairman and former California lieutenant governor Mike Curb to endow the school's arts college and provide a lead gift for a planned regional performing arts center that will also serve as a "learning laboratory" for students.

The gift from Curb — who left the school in 1963 after writing "You Meet the Nicest People on a Honda (Go Little Honda)," the song that launched his career as an award-winning songwriter, music producer, and record company owner — is the largest single gift from an individual in the university's history.

Half of the gift will support the college, with $4 million designated for the school's endowment and $1 million supporting a faculty chair specializing in music industry studies. The other $5 million will support a campaign for a planned "Imagine the Arts" center, which, when completed, will be the largest venue of its kind in the San Fernando Valley region.

"Cal State Northridge is a university where nearly 35,000 students from many different cultures and backgrounds can find opportunities," said Curb. "Cal State Northridge is essential to the future of this region, so I feel my gift here is really doing something of value."