Founded in 1935 as UCLA’s first support group, the Order of the Blue Shield membership represents one hundred men spanning eight decades of alumni and friends of the university. Its mission is "to further UCLA's interest and to guard the institution's welfare."
UCLA Alumni Association life membership and a history of service to the university are membership requirements for the Order of the Blue Shield. The charter members roll included UCLA visionaries William C. Ackerman, Edward A. Dickson, Robert Gordon Sproul, and Ernest Carroll Moore. Members today include regents emeriti of the University of California, UCLA Foundation members, UCLA Alumni Association past presidents, Wooden Fund donors, Chancellors Associates, and other volunteer leaders.
In 2004 the Order of the Blue Shield established a UCLA Library collection endowment for discretionary support in perpetuity. The initial goal was achieved in 2007 and continues to grow through the honoraria of program speakers and gifts from the Blue Shield members.
This fund was renamed the Darryl Johnson Memorial Library Fund in 2018 honoring a long-standing member who had a distinguished professional career and outstanding, exemplary leadership and service to UCLA.
