Ad Lux Campaign

Dear Alumnae/i and Friends,

The Ad Lux campaign, with its goal of $42 million, is the most significant fundraising initiative the College has ever undertaken. Despite that ambitious goal, when announcing the campaign in 2017, I hoped that we might reach $50 million. I am delighted, but ultimately not really surprised, that the devotion of Mount Saint Vincent alumnae/i and friends pushed the campaign well past that mark—to $70.7 million.

Ad Lux sought the financial and physical plant resources necessary to ensure the continued vitality of the College and its defining commitments—authentic opportunity and exceptional education well-grounded in the liberal arts. Through your generous support, you have demonstrated once again that you are stewards of the Mount’s mission: its values, traditions, and legacy.

It has been a great privilege to join you in this good work.

With abiding gratitude,

Charles L. Flynn, Jr. $17,712,384 in other grants. $4,312,421 in annual support (Annual Fund, Scholarship Tribute Dinner, and Mott Street Scholarships) during the final two years of the campaign.

As we reflect on the events of these past few months and usher in the new year, we remain ever hopeful for the continued healing of our suffering world. This year has brought with it many unfortunate and unexpected hardships. The COVID-19 virus wreaked havoc upon our weary and vulnerable globe. At the College, the effects of the pandemic have been wide-ranging. Financial threats to our mission continue to bring forth consequential repercussions across campus as state and federal governments decrease funding, events are postponed, and new programs are canceled.

Recently, New York State announced that it is withholding funding for several higher education support programs by 20 percent—including the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) and the Higher Education Opportunity Program (HEOP). This critically impacts the College’s budget and puts strain on our students and our families, most of whom are already experiencing financial distress.

While the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and other hardships experienced this year at Mount Saint Vincent will be long-lasting, the successful close of the Ad Lux capital campaign comes at an opportunistic time—providing the resources needed to create stability at the College amongst the uncertainty of our current world circumstance.

The Ad Lux campaign, the most ambitious fundraising effort in the College’s history, was established to ensure Mount Saint Vincent continues to have the resources needed to offer an exceptional liberal arts education in the Catholic tradition to talented students of every background.

Announced during Reunion and Homecoming Weekend 2017, the campaign—with a goal of $42,000,000—set out to provide support for several of the College’s strategic priorities.

And not only was the $42 million goal achieved—it was shattered. The campaign closed at a record-breaking $70,772,460—securing gifts, pledges, and grants in excess of $40 million for the College’s endowment and strengthening our founding mission.

“The Ad Lux campaign had an ambitious goal,” said Steven Hayes, Chair of the Board of Trustees. “We are all thrilled to have significantly surpassed it. The College’s alumnae/i and friends recognized the remarkable strength of the College’s academic programs and learning opportunities. Through their generosity, they selflessly committed themselves to ensuring the good work that takes place each day at Mount Saint Vincent continues for generations of students to come.”

The name Ad Lux, Latin for “toward the light,” illuminates Mount Saint Vincent’s commitment to making the transformative benefits of a higher education available to students of diverse backgrounds and provide them with the essential foundation needed to lead lives of accomplishment, leadership, and service. In order to do this, the Ad Lux campaign focused on initiatives with an aim to build on the legacy of the Sisters of Charity, grow the College’s enrollment, and enhance programmatic depth.

Ad Lux sought to raise substantial funding to support two main areas of the College’s strategic plan: build a credible endowment and support essential campus enhancements.

Growing the endowment for scholarships ensures the College continues to create and expand access to educational opportunity, especially as families face financial hardship in the wake of COVID-19. Now, more than ever, the College is equipped with the resources needed to provide generous scholarships to 100 percent of its students. The campaign has resulted in the creation of 27 new endowed scholarship funds and the commitment of over $30 million in endowed scholarship funding, including the largest gift in the College’s history—a generous bequest of $7,500,000 from the late Martha E. Fedorko ’56, M.D.

Martha was a proud and accomplished alumna with an extensive career as a medical research scientist and community health practitioner. Throughout her career in health care, she treated each patient with compassion, empathy, and kindness. Martha’s love for medicine was her service. Working on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, her patients came from minority and immigrant backgrounds. Many did not have insurance or access to medications. Many could not support their families’ needs. The spirit of service was instilled in Martha during her time at the Mount through the Sisters of Charity and she treated many of these immigrant families for free, which she did quietly and reverently.

“Martha loved the Mount,” remarked Madeleine Melkonian, Senior Vice President for Admission and External Relations. “She remained connected to the College and was loyal to her alma mater, giving consistently throughout her life. The gift and magnitude of her estate came as a surprise, as it reflects her humble but stalwart commitment to quiet generosity. We are greatly thankful for it. Her legacy is sure to carry on as her gift sustains scholarships and financial aid awards for talented and deserving students.”

The Ad Lux campaign also included endowment growth to further support both the Mott Street Scholarship Program and Seton Service and Leadership Program. These two programs, rooted in the ministries of the Sisters of Charity, provide financial aid to students who have overcome foster care or homelessness or show promise and leadership as servant leaders in a turbulent world.

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Over 80 students have been selected as Seton Service and Leadership scholars since the program’s inception. Collectively, they have led over 30,000 hours of service, engaging the Mount community with organizations that address the immediate needs of the disenfranchised and most vulnerable—the disabled, elderly, homeless, working poor, and youth—while pursuing advocacy and policy work to address the causes of inequities.