HERSHEY, Dad. — Penn State Health and Penn State College of Medicine surpassed their fundraising goal by raising $315.96 million and helping the university achieve record-breaking success in its recently completed six-year campaign, “A Greater Penn State for 21st Century Excellence .” June 30 marked the end of both the most successful campaign and the most successful fundraising year in the institution’s history. The Penn State Health and College of Medicine total represents a new peak in campaign fundraising and a transformative investment by nearly 575,000 alumni, friends, business partners and others in its mission to improve health through patient care, education, research and community outreach.
“The spirit of generosity we’ve seen in our organization and our community is amazing,” said Steve Massini, CEO of Penn State Health. “Throughout the campaign, our donors have helped us grow, even during the darkest days of the pandemic. They helped us expand our children’s hospital, build a new interfaith chapel, and establish the Penn State Cancer Institute’s Cancer Assistance and Resource Education, or CARE, center at Hershey Medical Center. Donations supported life-saving equipment in our community hospitals and covered the cost of a new ambulance and isolators for Life Lion’s fleet. Thanks to the support of so many, Penn State Health has a very bright future. This is good news for the many thousands of people we serve each year, and we are truly grateful.”
The campaign, which began in 2016, focused on the three key requirements of a 21st century public university: keeping the doors to higher education open for hard-working students, regardless of their financial well-being; creating transformative experiences beyond the classroom; and impact the world by serving communities and fueling discovery, innovation and entrepreneurship.
“Through their extraordinary support, our donors have recognized the tremendous potential our faculty, students and staff have to improve human health,” said Dr. Kevin Black, interim dean of Penn State College of Medicine. “In just six years, supporters have more than doubled our scholarship amount and provided vital resources for recruiting and retaining leading educators in many disciplines. The educational impact of this campaign is significant: reduced student debt, new learning tools and strategies, stronger research collaborations, the development of new therapies, and better access to cross-cultural training and community activities. Words cannot express our deep appreciation for all the ways our alumni and friends have made the College of Medicine greater.”
Within Penn State Health and the College of Medicine, key campaign gifts and priorities were:
- Raised more than $165 million for children’s health through Children’s Miracle Network, Four Diamonds and THON – and through donations made directly to Penn State Health Children’s Hospital.
- A $25 million gift from Highmark Inc. to advance research, education, and care at the Penn State Cancer Institute.
- More than $54 million for research through existing funds and 36 new grants to support discoveries in various fields or advance medical innovation.
- More than $47 million in specialized care and clinical programs that benefit patients and families across the health system.
- More than $18 million in medical, graduate and physician assistant grants, including the College of Medicine’s largest single grant gift of $4 million from the John E. Morgan Foundation and more than $7.5 million through three initiatives for matching scholarships, including the university-funded Educational Equity Scholarship Matching Program that yielded 15 new scholarships.
- A $5 million gift from Peter and Marshia Carlino to support inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) research, faculty support and patient care, and the name of the Carlino Family IBD Center.
- Gifts to establish 30 new endowments to support educators, fellows and residents in at least 18 medical disciplines, including faculty positions such as the Chester Ray Trout Chair in Pediatric Surgery, the Children’s Miracle Network and Four Diamonds Chair in Pediatrics, the Cullen/Tombros Early Career Professorship and the Robert and Gail Zelis Lectureship for Career Development
- A $2 million pledge from the PNC Foundation to support Penn State Startup Week, Penn State PRO Wellness, Four Diamonds’ Mini-THON Leadership Summit and the establishment of the PNC Community Health Impact Endowment.
- Nearly $7.5 million to upgrade facilities and equipment, including a $5 million gift from The Donald B. and Dorothy L. Stabler Foundation to support the three-story Children’s Hospital expansion; a $1 million pledge from Di and Dallas Krapf to build a new interfaith chapel at Milton S. Hershey Medical Center; an anonymous $1 million donation to support the construction of the Penn State Cancer Institute’s CARE Center; support from the Giorgi Family Foundation for an advanced PET/CT scanner for Joseph Medical Center; and sponsorship of original, diverse works of art commissioned by Hampden Medical Center
“Over the past six years, I have been privileged to see the Penn State Health and College of Medicine community — educators, physicians, students, administration and staff, alumni and friends — work together to overcome unprecedented challenges and achieve unparalleled success. achievement,” said Peter Tombros, president of the volunteer campaign. “I am grateful to all the donors and volunteers who have embraced the vision of our leaders and given their time, talents and treasures to improve human health, and I am proud of the transformative impact we have made together.”
“Whether through financial donations, volunteerism or sharing words of encouragement, every act of generosity has made a difference in this campaign,” added Kelly Altland, associate vice president and chief development officer. “The contributions of our donors are impressive regardless, but the myriad of ways their generosity affects people’s lives can never be fully measured.”
Details on the campaign’s performance, as well as the results of each Penn State university and campus, are available at morepennstate.psu.edu. Stories about the impact of philanthropy at Penn State Health and the College of Medicine can be found at engagement.pennstatehealth.org/GPSCampaign.