A $7 million gift from a California construction executive who graduated from Penn State more than a half-century ago will help draw top engineering faculty here, school officials announced yesterday.

William E. Leonhard, the chairman, president and CEO of the Parsons Corporation in Pasadena, Calif., said he donated the money because of what he perceives as a decreasing pool of engineering students in the United States.

"America is in danger of losing its competitive edge because our most gifted students are choosing other fields," he said in a statement.

The donation adds to the University's six-year, $300 million Campaign for Penn State, which met its goal in November but continues until June.

"It's certainly one of the largest gifts in our history," said Roger Williams, the University's vice president for university relations.

About $4 million of the gift will help create the Leonhard Center for Engineering Education -- in the name of Leonhard and his wife, Wyllis -- which will recruit educators and train them through internships.

The center will be endowed from a life insurance policy on the couple.

University President Bryce Jordan, in a statement, welcomed the gift as an opportunity to "make profound contributions to the quality of engineering education in our nation."

"It addresses a critical national problem," Jordan said.

The Campaign for Penn State has raised $326 million as of the end of last month. The last multi-million dollar gift came from University Board of Trustees President J. Lloyd Huck, who donated a $5 million life insurance policy in January.

Last November, a $10 million gift from alumni Frank and Mary Jean Smeal to the College of Business Administration pushed the campaign over the $300 million mark.

College of Engineering Dean John A. Brighton said the Leonhards' gift will put Penn State in a leadership position among American universities in recognizing the importance of addressing waning interest in engineering.

"(It) allows us to take the lead in shaping future directions for engineering education," Brighton said.

Leonhard, on the 32-member executive committee of the Campaign for Penn State, has already given the College of Engineering $1.25 million to endow an acoustical engineering chair and a microelectronics professorship in his name.

He oversees some 9,000 engineers at Parsons, a firm which designs and builds oil refineries, airports, shipyards, defense installations and a host of other useful conglomerations.

Two of the Leonhards' children also are Penn State graduates.