Mayor Bloomberg donates $350 million to Johns Hopkins University

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is giving $350 million to alma mater Johns Hopkins University, increasing his lifetime giving the university past $1 billion.  

University officials say Bloomberg is now the first person to give more than $1 billion to a single U.S. university.  

$250 million will go toward a variety of cross-disciplinary subjects, including research on water resources, health care, global health, the science of learning and urban revitalization.  The remaining $100 million will go to need-based financial aid for undergraduate students, awarding 2,600 Bloomberg scholarships in the next 10 years.  

"Johns Hopkins University has been an important part of my life since I first set foot on campus more than five decades ago," Bloomberg said in a statement released by the university. "Each dollar I have given has been well-spent improving the institution and, just as importantly, making its education available to students who might otherwise not be able to afford it."  

Bloomberg, a 1964 graduate, has remained closely involved with the university, including stints on its board of trustees from 1996 to 2002 and as chairman of Johns Hopkins Initiative fundraising campaign.  

He made a past gift of $120 million toward the construction of a children's section at The John Hopkins Hospital in honor of his late mother.