College of Mount Saint Vincent Dinner Raises nearly $500,000 for Scholarship Fund
5/8/2008
Success Continues Trend of Unprecedented Growth for the Mount
On April 22, 2008, The University of Mount Saint Vincent hosted its annual Scholarship Tribute Dinner at Cipriani on 42nd Street in New York City. The gala is a significant event for the College and for the community as monies raised provide scholarship funds for students with extraordinary ability and great need, a vital investment in the future.
This year’s Scholarship Dinner raised nearly $500,000 – nearly double the proceeds raised by this event at the beginning of the decade – and represents an ever increasing trajectory of success over the past 8 years. That the Dinner raised nearly half a million dollars in these trying economic times is a reflection of the College’s many achievements and unprecedented growth.
This is the 22nd dinner the College has hosted and the eighth under College President Charles Flynn’s tenure. This year the Dinner honored three individuals for their strength of character, leadership, business acumen, and devotion to making higher education accessible: Thomas J. Kenny of Goldman Sachs and University of Mount Saint Vincent trustee, James J. Kerwin, of Aviva Life and Annuity Company of NY, and Mark Bodden of the Rudin Foundations, with Mr. and Mrs. Jack Rudin in attendance.
Funds raised through the Scholarship Dinner allow the College to give students like speaker Samantha Graham ’08 the opportunity to reach beyond their expectations at a private institution. “As a high school student in the Bronx, a private Catholic college was not on the top of my list. I wasn’t catholic and I thought it was priced out of my reach,” said Graham. “Not only was I accepted, I was offered a generous scholarship which was the determining factor in me attending the Mount.”
It is also a determining factor for the nearly 95% of the College’s incoming freshmen who receive some form of financial aid. The benefits of this generosity are felt directly within the community. At this deeply-rooted local institution, 85% of this year’s graduating seniors hail from New York with almost 40% of those students from Yonkers and the Bronx.
The 2008 Scholarship Tribute Dinner marks continued unparalleled fundraising success at the Mount during the tenure of Charles Flynn, who became president of the College in 2000. The College has never been stronger financially, and has used this strength gained under Charles Flynn’s leadership since 2000 to enhance its programs, increase student enrollment, and make significant improvements to its campus.
At the core of fundraising efforts, Mount Saint Vincent is committed to making quality education accessible to qualified students who otherwise lack the financial means to pay for it. Most important, President Flynn provides the leadership that has enabled the College to make these improvements, while building upon the strengths of the College’s existing culture. Always in sight is the Mount’s beautiful mission: to prepare students for lives of extraordinary achievement and service. This dinner caps off yet another impressive year at the University of Mount Saint Vincent.