‘Pathways of Promise’ campaign ends early, exceeds goal
Outstanding donor support enables future research, teaching and learning, community and global health
UMass Chan Medical School has successfully completed its ambitious Pathways of Promise fundraising campaign, surpassing the $250 million goal ahead of schedule.
“We embarked on a campaign with the bold aspiration of driving advances with the power to transform the course of human disease and guiding promising students to become world-class medical practitioners, researchers and educators,” said UMass Chan Medical School Chancellor Michael F. Collins. “We discovered a world hungry for our style of creative, rigorous medical science, education and collaboration. The belief and generosity of our community, friends and supporters will strengthen our institution today and for years to come.”
Over the course of the campaign, 101 new endowed funds totaling $40 million were created and the institution received the largest single gift from a graduate in its history, as well as the largest gift from a parent.
With commitments totaling $4.7 million, the campaign has also helped support financial aid for deserving candidates, as well as curricular and technological enhancements that ensure students have access to a cutting-edge academic experience.
Through Pathways of Promise, UMass Chan Medical School strengthened ties to the community—both locally and internationally. Close to home, the campaign helped support engagement initiatives, scholarships and programs that create opportunities for residents of Worcester and Massachusetts. Internationally, UMMS researchers are working with communities around the globe to reduce health disparities, strengthen health care infrastructure and education, and develop responses to disease outbreaks and epidemics.
Generous donors also made it possible for the institution to continue to invest in attracting and retaining the best and brightest researchers, practitioners and educators. Resources from Pathways of Promise helped create 19 new endowed chairs and five term chairs.
Donors supported initiatives that help transform biomedical breakthroughs into lifesaving therapeutics, some of which are now in clinical trials. The establishment of the Li Weibo Institute for Rare Diseases Research was made possible by a $10 million gift, and the launch of a clinical and research program on Duchenne muscular dystrophy resulted from $6 million in financing from a coalition of donors and funders. Recent philanthropy has also played a significant role in advancing scientific discoveries into first-in-human clinical trials, among them a clinical trial for ALS and one for Tay-Sachs disease.
“The Pathways of Promise campaign has been an overwhelming success,” said Vice Chancellor for Advancement John R. Hayes Jr. “The generosity of our alumni, parents, friends, corporations and foundations has been unprecedented and will forever impact, in so many positive ways, the world-class medical research and education taking place at UMass Chan Medical School. Thank you to everyone who supported this vitally important initiative.”
