Hamilton College in Clinton, New York, has announced a $16 million gift from the SunUp Foundation for undergraduate scholarships.

The largest gift in the college's history will be used to create a financial aid endowment, provide support for faculty research in the sciences, and fund new arts facilities on campus. The SunUp Foundation is led by Edward Taylor, who graduated from Hamilton in 1946 and established the foundation in 1999 with royalties from a patent on Alimta, an anti-tumor agent that he developed in collaboration with Eli Lilly and Company.

Longtime supporters of the college, Taylor and his wife donated $1 million in 2008 to establish the Edward and Virginia Taylor Fund for student/faculty research in chemistry. Since its inception, the fund has supported the work of thirty-one students who have partnered with faculty to conduct research in organic chemistry, biochemistry, and physical chemistry. In recognition of their most recent gift, the college's Science Center will be named after the couple.

"The Taylors have directed their generosity toward Hamilton's most pressing needs, especially student scholarship aid," said Jeff Little, vice chair of the college's board of trustees. "Their gift will live on in perpetuity through the students whose lives will now be changed by a Hamilton education. It is fitting that the Taylors will allow us to recognize their philanthropy by naming the Science Center for them."