Photo: Salem State University
SALEM, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — Salem State University has set a new record for the largest cash gift ever received by a Massachusetts state university.
The $10 million donation from the Cummings Foundation to Salem State's School of Education will be used to expand efforts to diversify the next generation of educators for schools in the area.
"We serve perhaps as many, if not more gateway communities than any other state university in the Commonwealth," said Salem State President John Keenan. "You think of Salem, you think of Lynn, you think of Peabody, Chelsea, Revere, all those communities that are in dire need of teachers. So we are hopeful that we'll be able to increase that supply of students who come from the community and go back to teaching in those communities."
The gift will also go towards creating a professional learning center that will focus on retaining teachers and school leaders, supporting the development of anti-racist and equity-focused instructional and leadership practices, and helping guide the way to licensure for hundreds of emergency-licensed teachers in the region, Salem State said Monday.
This is the second time in history that Salem State University announced it had received the largest cash gift among the nine state universities in Massachusetts. In February 2021, they announced a $6 million donation from alumna Kim Gassett-Schiller and her husband, Apple Fellow Philip Schiller.
WBZ's Carl Stevens (@CarlWBZ) reports.
Follow WBZ NewsRadio: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | iHeartmedia App