Momentum 2 Endowment Matching Campaign

Our new matching campaign for endowed gifts matches all NEW gifts and pledges of $25,000 or more to any endowment until December 31, 2025, or until the upper limit of $5 million is reached.

To help support our recently launched, transformative Momentum 2 five-year strategic plan, all NEW outright gifts and pledges (to be paid within five years or less) of $25,000 or more will be matched for any of the following endowments.

Student Endowments

• Undergraduate full-ride scholarship (tuition/room/ board)
• Undergraduate full-tuition scholarship
• Graduate Scholarship
• Student Research Scholarship
• Scholars Program
• Study Abroad Fund
• Internship Fund
• Endowed Scholarship (undergraduate or graduate)

Faculty Endowments

• Deanship
• Chaired Professorship
• Professorship
• Faculty Fellowship
• Faculty Excellence Award
• Faculty Research Fund
• Faculty Development Fund

Program Endowments

• Visiting Lectureship Series
• Unrestricted School Fund
• Program Support Fund
• Athletic Team Fund
• Library Fund
• Award Fund

Does your company or organization offer a matching plan for your donations? With the Momentum 2 Endowment Matching Campaign, it’s possible that you could quadruple your initial endowment: a gift of $25,000 matched by your company turns into $50,000; then with the Adelphi match, the total gift becomes $100,000.

Endowment Scholarships

Pearl Jolles Groothuis Memorial Fund

This fund was established in 1957 by Irving Groothuis in memory of his wife, Pearl ’36, to benefit voice and music majors. In 2015, Pearl’s son, Michael, continued the legacy by adding $15,000 to the endowment and in January 2023, Michael’s son, Adam, contributed an outright gift of $50,000. Thanks to these gifts and the matching program, the fund’s market value is $155,000, yielding $7,000 annually in scholarship dollars.

Manuel and Manuela Memorial Scholarship

In 2019, Norma Melendez ’76 established the Manuel R. Melendez Scholarship with a gift of $25,000 to honor the life journey of her father and to share his love of music and education and his pride in his Latino heritage. This fund provides resources to an Adelphi student pursuing a BS in music or music education who has financial need. In 2022, Norma committed another $25,000 when her mother passed and renamed the scholarship the Manuel and Manuela Memorial Scholarship.

Ali-Weekes Endowed Scholarship

Karen Sani Ali Esq. established this scholarship in 2018 with a gift of $25,000 in honor of her late mother. In January 2023, after her father’s death, she made another commitment of $25,000. Karen, a first-generation college graduate, says the scholarship pays tribute to her parents’ sacrifices in providing her and her siblings with an education. Karen also wanted to honor her son, Justin Rashad Weekes ’19, who she said received an incredible education at Adelphi. The scholarship is aimed at relieving the financial burden of students.

Mildred Clegg Ackerley ’55, MA ’76, Endowed Scholarship in Mathematics

Mildred (Mil) Clegg Ackerley ’55, MA ’76, attended Adelphi on a full scholarship and graduated magna cum laude in 1955 with a mathematics degree. She earned her graduate degree in education in 1976. In 2005, at Mildred’s 50th reunion, her children established the Mildred Clegg Ackerley Endowed Scholarship in Mathematics in her honor. When she passed away in 2015, family members donated an additional $100,000, participating in the University’s inaugural scholarship match campaign. In 2023, her sons Lee and Bob donated $400,000 to the endowment. Her scholarship fund, which now stands at an impressive $1 million, is the largest endowment in Adelphi’s history to benefit the Department of Mathematics and Computer Science.

The Gregory Nerko ’70, MS ’73 Baseball Scholarship Fund

Gregory Nerko ’70, MS ’73, gained valuable life lessons playing on the Adelphi University baseball team. Nerko, who played catcher, credits his experience as a student-athlete as the foundation for his life and career. Now he intends to provide this opportunity to future generations of Panthers and has created the Gregory Nerko Baseball Scholarship Fund with a $100,000 gift.

The Daniel Viola Family Scholarship for Neurodiversity

Deborah Viola ’84, PhD, committed $25,000 to establish the Daniel Viola Family Scholarship for Neurodiversity to provide resources for students in the Bridges to Adelphi program. Her college experiences and professional success, coupled with her advocacy and support of the neurodiverse community, inspired her to generously create this endowment in her son Daniel’s name. Deborah also serves on the President’s Advisory Council and Willumstad School of Business Dean’s Advisory Board.

For more information on how to fund an endowment, please contact: