Anonymous Donor Gifts $1 Million to SUNY Schenectady

This month, the Schenectady County Community College Foundation received a $1 million gift from a longtime friend and benefactor of the College, marking only the second time in the College’s 50-year history that a gift of this magnitude has been made to the Foundation.

The $1 million gift will allow the College to create an endowed student support fund with interest generated by the endowment used for the Food Pantry, Student Emergency Fund, the Student Mentoring Program, College in the High School Program, scholarships, and other initiatives that encourage student access and success, one of SUNY Schenectady’s strategic goals. The donor wishes to remain anonymous.

Dr. Steady Moono, President of SUNY Schenectady, expressed his deep appreciation for this substantial gift and explained the long-lasting impact that it will have on current and future students.

“We are profoundly grateful to our donor for making this important investment in SUNY Schenectady and for serving as a true vision supporter for our current students as they follow their individual paths in higher education to pursue their dreams, as well as for generations of students in the future,” Dr. Moono said. “Our student support services and scholarships provide the access that is often necessary for students to persist in their educational pursuits and achieve their goals. This wonderful gift will help us to continue offering all of those essential services to students for decades to come.”

A significant portion of the gift will be invested, resulting in annual support in perpetuity, something that further contributes to its impact, said Ann Fleming Brown, Chair of the SUNY Schenectady Board of Trustees.

“The fact that hundreds of students now and in the years ahead will benefit from the generosity of our donor and this gift is extremely meaningful,” she noted. “It will allow us to further expand support services that assist our students in a variety of ways and scholarships that ease the financial burden for students and their families.” 

Currently, as students and their families continue to face the dramatic and devastating effects of the pandemic, resources at the College are vital for students to succeed. Stacy McIlduff, Vice President of Development and External Affairs, said that this gift and others like it help to lessen the challenges that students are facing.

“We are humbled to be the recipient of such a remarkably generous donation,” she said. “During a time when there is so much anxiety about the years ahead, the kindness of this individual is instilling hope for a brighter future for our students. It is very exciting to think about the transformational changes this gift will make for students and their families.”