Mildred Clegg Ackerley ’55, MA ’76 and the Ackerley Family

In 1951, as the valedictorian and class president of her local high school, Mildred (“Mil”) Clegg Ackerley ’55, MA ’76, received a full academic scholarship to Adelphi. For a family supported by her father’s teacher’s salary, it was the opportunity that made college accessible.

“Her talent could have taken her anywhere,” said her son, Lee Ackerley. “Our mom remained grateful all her life for that scholarship from Adelphi.”

Mildred Ackerley graduated magna cum laude from Adelphi in 1955 with a degree in mathematics, beginning her career with NASA at the Marshall Space Center. Nearly two decades later, she returned to Adelphi to earn her master’s in education, while raising her five children. Her next 30 years were spent teaching mathematics to Long Island children and, as an active Adelphi alumna, serving as director of the Alumni Association and as an alumni trustee.

In 2009, Mil established the Mildred Clegg Ackerley ’55 Endowed Scholarship in Mathematics through a planned gift, laying the foundation for a family legacy at Adelphi. When she passed away in 2015, her five children honored her lifelong connection to the University with a $100,000 gift to her scholarship—an amount that doubled to $200,000 through Adelphi’s inaugural matching campaign. In 2023, her sons Lee and Bob further expanded that legacy, contributing an additional $400,000 to the Momentum 2 Endowment Matching Campaign. Mil’s endowed scholarship in mathematics is now the largest in the Department of Mathematics and Computer Science.

In 2025, Lee Ackerley deepened the family’s commitment by pledging $500,000—matched again under the Momentum 2 Endowment Matching Campaign—to create the Mildred Clegg Ackerley ’55, MA ’76 Endowed Professorship in Mathematics and Computer Science, the first endowed professorship in Adelphi’s College of Arts and Sciences.

Together, these gifts—initiated by Mil and carried forward by her children—ensure that her gratitude for Adelphi and her belief in educational opportunity will continue to benefit students and faculty for generations.