Alden Trust Awards Assumption $1 Million in Support of New Academic Building
Assumption has announced that the Trustees of the George I. Alden Trust of Worcester, Massachusetts have awarded a $1 million grant to the institution in support of the construction of its new state-of-the-art academic building. The grant is among the highest that the Trust has awarded to an institution of higher learning of Assumption’s size.
The grant was the result of a thorough application process that included a campus visit by Alden Trust representatives. In support of the new academic building, Alden Trust Trustees noted, “we view this as an exceptionally large grant in part because of the pivotal role this new facility will play in the Assumption education for your students.”
Assumption hosted a ceremonial groundbreaking on the new academic building in early April. The 60,000-square-foot building will contain 13 high-tech, flexible classrooms of varying sizes, seminar rooms, common study spaces, a 400-seat performance hall, a rehearsal room, a multi-purpose space, faculty offices for the Assumption Core Texts and Enduring Questions Program, the Business Studies Department, the Honors Program, the Center for Teaching Excellence, and a new Center for the Study of Ethics. The new building will ensure that students in Business Studies and the liberal and performing arts will also have access state-of-the-art facilities in which to learn, debate and inspire.
“On behalf of the students and faculty whose academic experience at Assumption will be enhanced by the new building and its many amenities for our community, we are grateful to the George I. Alden Trust for recognizing the importance and value of what will become a focal point of our mission and the intellectual life on our campus,” said Assumption President Francesco C. Cesareo, Ph.D. “As I shared during the groundbreaking, this building not only meets the insitution’s needs and aspirations, but also fulfills the dream of the Venerable Fr. Emmanuel d’Alzon, founder of the Augustinians of the Assumption, to provide opportunities where a number of disciplines meet and complement one another, where true wisdom is derived by delving into one’s course of study.”
According to The Alden Trust, George I. Alden established the Trust in August 1912 for the general purpose of “the maintenance of some charitable or philanthropic enterprises” with particular expressed interest in “the promotion of education in schools, colleges, or other educational institutions.” The Trust shares that its Trustees have given priority to higher education, predominately in support of independent undergraduate education, in smaller institutions with full time traditional undergraduate enrollments of at least 1,000 students and with a total undergraduate and graduate student population (full time equivalents) of under 5,000 with a focus of support on institutions in New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and the six New England states.
“The Alden Trust is pleased to support this ambitious project, one that we expect will have a lasting impact on the intellectual growth of Assumption students,” said Warner S. Fletcher, Chair. “In the spirit of George Alden who sought to ‘do the greatest good for the greatest number of beneficiaries,’ this new academic building aligns with our priority to support endeavors that promote excellence in education, thoughtful programming, and responsible stewardship among the administration.”
Plans for the building—which is under construction in the area between Hagan Hall, the Information Technology Building/Fuller Hall and Switzer Building—were approved by Assumption’s Board of Trustees at their February meeting. The targeted date of completion for the new building is fall 2017.