SCHOLARSHIP CAMPAIGN RAISES MORE THAN $20-MILLION FOR COTC & OHIO STATE NEWARK

The Next Generation Challenge scholarship campaign at Central Ohio Technical College (COTC) and The Ohio State University at Newark has surpassed its $20-million goal making it the most successful fundraising effort in the history of the two institutions. The campaign began in April 2010 and culminated last month, with a final donation that propelled the grand total past the goal. The preliminary total is $20,847,506.53. Unique about this scholarship campaign was the matching opportunity, a rare chance to double the impact of every donation. Granville philanthropists J. Gilbert Reese and Louella Reese challenged the community in April 2010 by personally matching all gifts, multi-year pledges and planned gifts dollar-for-dollar up to $10 million to support the growth of endowed scholarships at both schools. Culminating the campaign was the final gift, a combined $2 million from Ariel Corporation and Ariel Foundation, headquartered in Mount Vernon, Ohio. Karen Buchwald Wright, President and CEO of Ariel, has a long-standing relationship with COTC and was instrumental in establishing a permanent home for the COTC Knox Campus in downtown Mount Vernon. The $2 million gift will benefit Knox County students attending either COTC or Ohio State Newark. “I am absolutely thrilled to be able to say the Next Generation Challenge was not only met, but exceeded its $20 million goal,” said COTC Dr. President Bonnie Coe. “We are so appreciative to the Reeses for their tremendous generosity, to Karen Buchwald Wright for pushing us past our goal, and to the many, many community partners who have made the Reeses’ vision to grow endowed scholarships a reality.” The Newark Campus Development Fund, a permanent locally controlled endowment that provides funding for innovative projects and scholarships at COTC and Ohio State Newark, served as the primary recipient of scholarship gifts for the campaign. Donors were able to designate their gift to benefit students at either COTC or Ohio State Newark or they could make an unrestricted, cost-shared gift to benefit students of both institutions. “Today, more than 50 years since its founding, the campus remains true to ensuring accessibility to an Ohio State education,” said William L. MacDonald, executive dean of the regional campuses and dean director at Ohio State Newark. “I am so grateful to Lou and Gib, and to all of our donors, for their incredible generosity and foresight in helping to create a better future for our community.” The first Next Generation Challenge scholarship awards will be allocated during autumn semester 2012. With over $10 million in community gifts, matched by $10 million from the Reeses, COTC, Ohio State Newark and NCDF will ultimately be able to award the equivalent of ‘five hundred’ $2,000 student scholarships annually in perpetuity.