Campaign Bulletin - August 2009

New Alliance Receives Its First Grant Award

With a $50,000 grant, The Stoddard Charitable Trust is the first Worcester-based foundation to support the exciting partnership between the College and the Worcester Center for Crafts (WCC), New England’s leading center for craft education, exhibition, and entrepreneurship. This grant will support establishing a new organizational infrastructure for the Center, the creation of a programmatic work plan for community and academically based courses, workshops, and classes, and staffing and facility upgrades. “We are so pleased to have The Stoddard Charitable Trust, a venerable supporter of the Worcester arts community, help us begin this important endeavor,” said WCC Board President William O’Neil, M.Ed. ’63, Ed.D., who also sits on the Worcester State Foundation Board and is a co-chair of the Opportunity for a Lifetime campaign. This historic affiliation will build on WCC’s long, successful track record of providing quality craft education as it plans for the inclusion of new undergraduate programming for WSC students. The College will utilize its expertise in fiscal affairs, marketing, fundraising, and board governance as it creates a long-term profitable business model for the alliance. Registration has begun for fall glass-working classes at the WCC’s New Street Glass Works. Other craft classes at the main Sagamore Road location are expected to be offered in January. This grant is instrumental in helping to support the alliance’s reorganizational activities and builds on a long, supportive relationship between these organizations. 

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Art Gallery Facilities to Get Boost with New Grant

A $25,000 grant from the Fletcher Foundation in July was an exciting development for the Visual & Performing Arts (VPA) department. This funding will be used in the renovation of the campus art gallery in the Ghosh Science and Technology Center. It will provide for upgrades such as new flooring and gallery lighting. The gallery has been open for two years. Its current premier event is the annual student art exhibition, which has featured hundreds of artworks by students in Visual Arts and Communications courses. The exhibitions have been representative of a range of mediums, materials, concepts, and individual expression. An improved exhibit space is even more vital to the VPA department. The College recently received approval from the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education for the creation of an Interdisciplinary Visual and Performing Arts (IVPA) major. This major will become available in 2010 and prepare students to be creators and critical thinkers ready for entry-level arts careers and for graduate studies. Students and faculty will continue to engage in academic coursework rich with art, music, and theater. Though a sizable gift, this grant will not cover the gallery’s full, long-range modernization plan. Therefore, you can still make a gift toward this effort. If you would like more information on donating to this fund, you may contact Louise Taylor at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or 508-929-8033.

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Alumni Support Today’s Students with Reunion Gifts

The dedication of our alumni is particularly evident at reunion time, and this year was no exception. Gifts from the classes of 1954, 1959, 1964, and 1969 totaled nearly $40,000, and each was presented to President Ashley during dinner. The Class of 1959, the largest class in attendance, raised $13,980 through the efforts of the College’s very first reunion gift committee, which was led by Shirley Steele. Since this was combined with the amount raised for their 45th reunion, the class has amassed over $25,000 in scholarship aid. Margaret “Peggy” Curran ’54, M.Ed. ’56, and Dorothy “Dottie” McLoughlin ’54, M.Ed. ’56, presented the Class of 1954’s class gift of $6,285. At the Class of 1969 dinner, Foundation Board member Maryanne Hammond ’69, M.Ed.’72, Margaret Madaus ’69, M.Ed. ’73, and Beth Sannella ’69, M.Ed. ’73, presented the class gift of $10,502. Jo-Anne Cronin ’64, M.Ed. ’68, presented the Class of 1964’s reunion gift of $4,515. In addition, Vice President of Institutional Advancement Thomas McNamara ’94 announced during the Class of 1974 dinner that Sharen (Cutting) Shipley would present President Ashley with a gift of $25,000 to endow a scholarship. Read more>>

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Admired Professor’s Legacy to Live on through New Scholarship

This summer, Charlotte Spector fulfilled a wish of her late husband, a beloved colleague and esteemed History professor, Dr. Robert Spector: She established a scholarship for History majors with a gift of $25,000. Gifts in memory of Dr. Spector from friends, family, colleagues, and History alumni also helped build this scholarship fund. According to the Spector family, the late professor “took his greatest joy in teaching.” In the profile that will appear in the 2010-2011 scholarship directory, the family recalls how Dr. Spector’s “passion for imparting wisdom and inspiring young minds was only surpassed by the fulfillment he received back from his students.” A high-achiever who earned five undergraduate and graduate degrees and taught at Worcester State College and Northeastern University for over four decades, Dr. Spector was known for helping his students and former students with their graduate school and career choices. This scholarship aims to continue that by giving preference to applicants who plan to pursue graduate studies in law or history education. You may create a similar named scholarship fund with a gift of $25,000 or more. Each newly endowed scholarship takes us closer to the Opportunity for a Lifetime campaign’s goal to raise $4 million for scholarships. For more information, contact Camilla H. Caffrey, assistant vice president of Institutional Advancement, at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or 508-929-8141.

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Golf Tournaments Raise Funds for Scholarships

Several supporters of the Worcester State Foundation scholarship program took advantage of the summer months to host golf tournaments that raised significant sums for scholarships for WSC students. The family of the late Jill Ann Bilodeau ’97 held the first golf tournament in her memory in May to grow the Jill Ann Bilodeau Memorial Scholarship Fund. They raised more than $16,200. In June, the first annual Kevin D. Lyons Memorial Golf Tournament & Fundraiser was so successful that $25,000 was raised to establish an endowed scholarship in Kevin’s memory. Kevin, who received his bachelor’s degree in 1965 and master’s degree in 1971 from WSC, was a phenomenal Lancer baseball player and member of WSC Athletic Hall of Fame. The seventh annual Keith R. Lapierre Memorial Golf Tournament took place at Heritage Country Club in Charlton earlier this month. Part of the proceeds supported the Keith R. Lapierre ’02 Scholarship. In May, the 16th annual Alumni Scholarship Golf Tournament amassed over $40,000 and pushed the total scholarship aid raised since 1993 to over $450,000. You are not too late to golf in support of our scholarship program. The Ray “The Grip” Berthiaume Third Annual Golf Tournament is scheduled for Friday, Sept. 11 at Holden Hills Country Club. It is held in memory of the late Ray Berthiaume, who was a member of the Class of 1968. For more information, contact John DeCourcey at 508-265-0067. John’s goal is to raise $25,000 to endow a scholarship in memory of his friend.

Scholarship Endowed One Year Ahead of Schedule

The summer also saw Michael and Nancy Moran fulfill their pledge to establish an endowed scholarship in honor of Michael’s parents, Donald ’58 and Mary (Walsh) ’57 Moran. The creation of this scholarship fund was first announced at the 2008 Reunion Weekend, during the Class of 1958’s dinner. In addition, the Worcester State Foundation has received many gifts toward this fund, most recently in honor of Don and Mary’s 50th wedding anniversary. By meeting their pledge early, Michael and Nancy are doing a tremendous service to the Foundation’s scholarship program, which has seen the demand for scholarships grow every year. In fact, applications submitted last spring for this year’s academic scholarships were up 25 percent over 2008. Their gift is another example of the far-reaching impact of a Worcester State College education. “On behalf of my brother and sisters, I want to say we have truly been blessed as children,” Michael said at the 2008 Reunion. “We had parents who were teachers. Hopefully, every year there will be students who come through [the College] who want to be teachers and they will thank the both of you.” You can make an online gift to the Opportunity for a Lifetime campaign’s general scholarship fund right now by simply clicking here.

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