Mount Holyoke College 2021 Report on Philanthropy

Defining our moment. A collage of students engaged in activities around campus.

You met the moment.

As the world and nearly every local community bore solemn witness to the dangers of delay, inaction, isolation and even complacency in the past 18 months, others rose to the occasion. To the moment. And defined that moment with urgency, clarity, empathy and leadership.

You did just that. In supporting Mount Holyoke College and its students in the past year, despite all of the personal, community, social and even health challenges confronting you, you made a radical commitment to Mount Holyoke’s students, faculty, research and global community.

Both on campus and in the far-flung makeshift offices and study carrels of faculty, staff, and students, your support was met with resilience and discipline.

We recognize and applaud your action, courage and devotion. Thank you.

"If ever a moment needed curiosity it is this one. This moment in time, this moment in human history, is one that is anything but clear or certain, embrace the unfamiliar [and] be courageous in your learning and empowered in your pursuit of what is interesting, what is good, what is right, and what is just."

— Sonya Stephens, Commencement Address, May 23, 2021

Kelechi Ezeugwu

  

Kelechi Ezeugwu ’23, Southwick, Massachusetts, Psychology. “Having financial aid and scholarships has been huge. It meant I could work a few hours less and have time to study and do orgs, relax a little bit and decompress from the chaos of the world. I’m so grateful for it.”

MEET KELECHI

Providing a safety net for students. First-generation and low-income (FGLI) students bring unique strengths, skills and perspectives to Mount Holyoke's diverse learning community, and the College is invested in their success.

  

FY21 Student Safety Net Fund grants. Total Amount Funded:$152,564. Total Amount Requested: $372,176. Total Applications Received: 505. Total Grants Funded: 404.<br /> Average Grant: $338.56.<br />

LEARN ABOUT THE STUDENT SAFETY NET FUND

Your gifts make an impact: Supporting the financial aid needs of Mount Holyoke students

  

Making an impact. 73% of students received financial aid (2020-2021 academic year). Average financial aid grant (2019-2020 academic year): $31,111. Total financial aid awarded (2020-2021 academic year): $47,849,272.

Amy Martin Director of the Weissman Center for Leadership; Professor of English on the Emma B. Kennedy Foundation

  

“Scholarly engagement really enriches the academic mission of the College and that translates into opportunities for students and faculty. It allows me to think about the different aspects of what I do as an educator and scholar in a synthesized way.”

MEET AMY

Annual support: unlimited possibilities

  

Your gifts to The Mount Holyoke Fund in FY21 had an immediate impact on all areas of the College. With a focus on supporting access, opportunity and inclusion, your gift in FY21 ensured that our students are supported in their Mount Holyoke journey.

Historic year of giving. Gifts to the endowment reached a historic high of $45 million.

  

2020-2021 Giving. Alums: $54,173,283. Parents & Families: $345,834. Friends: $1,203,576. Corporations & Foundations: $2,067,629. Other: $50,842. TOTAL: $57,841,164.

LJ Williams ’23

  

“I love the professors. They take their jobs seriously, and they want their students to grow to be more analytical and apply critical thinking to acknowledge and be aware of the social issues happening in our society. It really is a liberal arts college.”

MEET LJ

Meet the Moment Challenge: Endowment gifts in support of financial aid are integral to attracting and supporting the best and brightest students from across the economic spectrum.

  

FY21 Meet the Moment Financial Aid Challenge. $11 million challenge. $12 million in gifts and pledges from 64 generous donors. $23 million for endowed financial aid.

LEARN ABOUT THE MEET THE MOMENT CHALLENGE

Investing in career success

  

The Lynk has supported over 2,100 students with a total of almost $8.5 million since 2014. 262 students were granted Lynk funding totaling $784,709. 81% of placements were remote, and 19% hybrid or in-person. 60% of placements were internships, 33% were research, 7% were independent projects.

LEARN ABOUT INTERNSHIPS

Patricia Brennan, Assistant Professor of Biological Sciences

  

Patricia Brennan, Assistant Professor of Biological Sciences. “Having students being able to stay here through the summer, being paid and having a stipend while they dive into the research for several weeks at a time, has made a big difference. They don’t have to worry about having to go and work somewhere else while doing research.”

MEET PATRICIA

Lucas Wilson, Professor of Africana Studies and Economics; Chair of Economics

  

Lucas Wilson, Professor of Africana Studies and Economics; Chair of Economics. “We transform people who come to us with ability and determination. … My principal goal is to learn who it is I’m teaching and figure out what they care about, what interests them as a passion, and how I can be supportive of them to follow that passion.”

MEET LUCAS

Leading with distinction. Mount Holyoke is #1 private school for making an impact.

  

Your support ensures Mount Holyoke’s continued excellence. Princeton Review: #1 private school for making an impact, #1 professors get high marks, #10 best alumni network.<br /> Forbes: #6 best college for international students.<br />

Rebeca Villatoro-Alvarez ’23

  

Rebeca Villatoro-Alvarez ’23, Revere, Massachusetts, History, Spanish. “It’s so empowering to know someone is telling your story. That’s one way I see myself using my education: getting the people I know published or giving them the self-authorship to get their own stories published, and get these stories into the curriculum.”

MEET REBECA

Funding academic excellence: $2.07 million in grants, fellowships and awards.

  

The scholarly and research goals of our faculty are supported by grants, fellowships and awards from government, private foundations and corporations. Mount Holyoke faculty are active researchers and leaders in their fields across the disciplines and have won many prestigious grants this year.

LEARN ABOUT 2020-2021 GRANTS

Mount Holyoke Fund Scholars Match

  

Each Mount Holyoke Fund Scholars gift provides a one-year named scholarship to a student with demonstrated need. Two $250,000 matching gifts, offered by trustees Bess Weatherman ’82 and Monica Landry ’90, inspired over $900,000 in gifts for The Mount Holyoke Fund Scholars Program in 2020-2021.

Dear Friends,

The 2020-2021 academic year required great sacrifice and great generosity from all members of the Mount Holyoke community. It gives me great joy to thank you, our loyal supporters, for helping to meet this unique moment with enduring gifts of spirit, of time and of resources.  

Our students, faculty and staff, tested in the crucible of a global pandemic, social unrest and dispersion from one another, found in your support and continued benevolence the courage and character to tackle their own and the world’s problems in this pivotal year. 

With $57.8 million from 9,746 alums, friends, faculty, staff and current students, your philanthropic action broke records. As a result, our enrollment remains strong, our faculty are well-supported, and more than 70% of our students continue to receive financial aid.

I am deeply grateful to all who participated in the Meet the Moment Scholarship Challenge and the Mount Holyoke Fund Scholars Match, with special thanks to our lead donors Liz Cochary Gross ’79 and Phill Gross, Nancy Nordhoff ’54, Bess Weatherman ’82 and Monica Landry ’90. Together these initiatives inspired more than 150 of you to give, totaling more than $23 million to support financial aid. 

At the College’s 183rd Convocation ceremony in September 2020, Student Government Association president Maya Sopory ’22 delivered a prescient message to the student body: 

“I firmly believe that Mount Holyoke is not just a physical place. It is the friends, staff and faculty that make it what it is. While we may not all be in the same place this semester, the Mount Holyoke community continues on through the connections that you have made and have yet to make.”

Sopory’s words ring ever truer each day. Every one of us can attest to the connectedness we have felt to one another across the vast expanse of ceremonies, classes and meetings convened in spaces far beyond South Hadley. True to our mission, this connectedness continued to strengthen Mount Holyoke College’s “thoughtful, effective, and purposeful engagement in the world.”

Your decision to support the College in this mission this year ensures that “Mount Holyoke forever shall be.” 

Sincerely,

Kassandra Jolley
Vice President for College Relations

Your gifts inspire us!

We are pleased to recognize the generous support of graduates, families and friends during the fiscal year (July 1, 2020–June 30, 2021).

View the list of donors >

Although every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the lists in this publication, we welcome feedback and questions. Please contact us at donorrelations@mtholyoke.edu or 413-538-2060.

Stewardship and Donor Relations
Office of Development
50 College Street
South Hadley, MA 01075