Ho Center for Buddhist Studies (HCBSS)

The Robert H. N. Ho Family Foundation Center for Buddhist Studies at Stanford University (HCBSS) is the successor to the Stanford Center for Buddhist Studies (SCBS). Originally founded in 1997, the Center was renamed in 2008, with an endowment from the Robert H. N. Ho Family Foundation and matching funds from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. HCBSS is housed in Building 70 on Stanford’s Main Quadrangle, where it maintains administrative offices and a reference library.

HCBSS is dedicated to the promotion of both the academic study and public understanding of the Buddhist tradition. The Center serves to coordinate, support, and develop the university’s resources for Buddhist Studies in four general areas: academic program, research, scholarly communication, and public outreach.

HCBSS works closely with the Department of Religious Studies and other academic units of the university in the training of undergraduate and graduate students. It provides research support for individual and team projects, and networks with individuals and institutions around the world to foster scholarly communication in Buddhist Studies. It offers an annual program of events, open to the public, and cooperates with Buddhist and other groups both on and off campus to foster knowledge of Buddhism in the community.