Julie ’91 (P. ’25, ’27) and Phil (P. ’25, ’27) Kamins
For Julie and Phil Kamins, a love of UC Berkeley runs deep in the family — as does a desire to give back. “My father, my sister, my son, and I attended Berkeley, and our daughter is a current student,” says Julie, proudly citing the family’s Cal extracurriculars ranging from son Joshua’s work at The Daily Cal to daughter Alana’s co-presidency of Danceworx, the student dance company that Julie herself once led. “Giving back to the community that helped to shape our family and our values is natural and full circle.”
The couple’s generosity to campus covers a wide range of areas, including gifts to the Cal Parents Fund and the Berkeley Basic Needs Fund — the latter addressing food and housing insecurity issues within the student body. “We teach our kids that giving is an empathetic act,” Phil says. “Empathy builds connection and hope. We want to set an example for giving to guide our children and our children’s children.”
Julie and Phil view their philanthropy to UC Berkeley as an extension of what they’ve learned through their work as an academic adviser and a dentist, respectively. “Being in service-oriented professions, we realize the power of impacting a community one individual at a time,” Julie says. “Supporting Berkeley means supporting the next generation of visionaries and changemakers.”
