On Jun. 22, 1925, the University of Wisconsin Board of Regents officially established the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF) to protect UW–Madison biochemist Harry Steenbock’s major vitamin D discovery, a breakthrough that led to the eradication of rickets worldwide.

WARF was initially funded with donations of $100 from nine University of Wisconsin-Madison alumni. WARF was the first such intellectual property organization for a university in the nation.