UF President Bernie Machen announced Monday that he and his wife, Chris, would pledge at least the amount of his annual $285,000 bonus to UF's Florida Opportunity Scholars Program this year.
The program, which Machen initiated in 2006, provides financial aid for incoming in-state, first-generation UF students whose annual household income is below $40,000, according to a UF news release.
The program sponsors about 1,100 UF students to date.
UF's Board of Trustees, the university's highest governing body, approved the bonus, citing Machen's performance in the 2007-2008 fiscal year of budget woes. Trustee Al Warrington was, like last year, the only member to vote against the bonus.
UF head football coach Urban Meyer and head basketball coach Billy Donovan announced their goal to generate $50 million for the scholarship program in October.
