Saint Paul's launched its "Now & Forever" campaign last November with the goal of raising $5 million. With the May 17 deadline fast approaching, the college needs to close a $1.2 million gap in the drive. The fund-raising campaign, along with budget right-sizing and organizational re-structuring at Saint Paul's, are key elements in the school's drive to be reaffirmed with full accreditation by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges in mid-June.
Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori, in an open letter to Episcopalians dated May 1, said Saint Paul's "has played a vital role in the life of our church since its founding in 1888." "We need the leadership and service of these students and graduates in our common life. We also need your assistance to help the students and faculty" to "continue their strong record of achievement now and well into our shared future," the bishop added. "Our challenge is to share the abundance of our lives with these students and this institution, so that all might share in the gifts that are being raised up in classrooms, playing fields and volunteer programs in southern Virginia."
Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori, in an open letter to Episcopalians dated May 1, said Saint Paul's "has played a vital role in the life of our church since its founding in 1888." "We need the leadership and service of these students and graduates in our common life. We also need your assistance to help the students and faculty" to "continue their strong record of achievement now and well into our shared future," the bishop added. "Our challenge is to share the abundance of our lives with these students and this institution, so that all might share in the gifts that are being raised up in classrooms, playing fields and volunteer programs in southern Virginia."
Investor Charles M. Royce and his wife Deborah are offering a $250,000 challenge grant of $1 for every $2 raised of unrestricted gifts through the May 17 deadline. The first $500,000 raised will become $750,000 toward the $1.2 million goal. "As Episcopalians, we share a deep, spiritual commitment to support educational institutions and strengthen communities," said Royce. "We take pride in Saint Paul's College and its important mission. With this gift, my wife Deborah and I hope to help ensure that Saint Paul's College will be able to continue to help young people fulfill their potential and serve and lead in their communities."
"We are humbled and honored to receive this support in our hour of need," said Saint Paul's College CEO and Interim President Eddie N. Moore, Jr. "For more than a century, Saint Paul's has evolved with the times, but remained united in mission with our founding Church to provide all students - and particularly the under served - with a strong sense of community, with spiritual guidance, and with a thirst for lifelong learning that would form them for service and leadership."
You can learn more about Saint Paul's College and make a donation online at www.saintpaulsnet.com.
