Alverno College in Milwaukee has received more than $3 million in donations after unlocking a $1.5 million matching gift, the college announced on Tuesday.
The matching gift was announced in May at Alverno College president Christy Brown’s inauguration and came from a group of anonymous donors who offered to donate up to $1.5 million matched by other gifts to the college. More than 470 donors have made contributions so far.
“I am profoundly grateful to the generous donors who made this matching gift possible,” Brown said. “We know Alverno provides a transformational education to our students, and these gifts are a testament of our community’s deep commitment to fostering growth and opportunity for future generations. It is tremendously uplifting to know that we met this goal so quickly.”
In August, Alverno received a $10 million donation — one of the largest in the college’s history — from John and Tashia Morgridge through the TOSA Foundation. John Morgridge is the former CEO and chairman of Cisco Systems, while Tashia Morgridge is a former special education teacher. Alverno College also recently received a $1.9 million grant from the National Science Foundation to support STEM students who come from low-income families.
“Because of this incredible support and the proactive steps we took earlier this year, Alverno is in a stronger financial position today than it was just four months ago,” Brown said.
Earlier this year, Alverno announced plans to eliminate 25 faculty and 12 staff positions, as well as reduce its undergraduate and graduate major options in an effort to cut costs as it faced financial challenges with enrollment down 28% from the 2014-15 school year. The college also announced it would eliminate its track and field team.
The funds raised will support scholarships, community programming and outreach, as well as “enhance comprehensive student support,” according to Alverno’s news release.
Alverno College is a Catholic liberal arts college for women that was founded in 1887.
