University Park, Pa. -- Children and undergraduate students from socially and economically disadvantaged backgrounds will benefit from a program endowment established in Penn State's College of Education with a $1.2 million commitment from University alumnus John Gilmartin.
Annual income from the John Gilmartin Endowment for Enhancing Educational Opportunities will strengthen existing programs or help to create new initiatives that aim to improve the quality of educational experiences for inner city children, according to College of Education Dean David Monk. The endowment might also support experimental schools, as well as undergraduate scholarships for students whose ethnic and cultural backgrounds contribute to the diversity of the Penn State student body.
"John has provided our college with tremendous flexibility to meet pressing needs in American education," said Monk. "We deeply appreciate his confidence in our faculty and his vision of how our college can address some of the most glaring educational inequities that our society faces."
Gilmartin, a 1965 graduate of Penn State's Smeal College of Business, has made creation of the endowment part of his estate plans. He is a retired CEO of Millipore Corp., a worldwide provider of products and services to life sciences companies. He is a trustee and former board chairman of the Boston Renaissance Charter School, which enrolls more than 1,400 Boston urban students in kindergarten through eighth grade in a safe, nurturing learning environment.
His wife, Mary Ann Gilmartin, is a former nursery school teacher and was also involved with the Boston Renaissance Charter School.
John Gilmartin's previous philanthropy to Penn State has included creation of a Trustee Scholarship in the College of Education and the endowment of a Renaissance Scholarship. Both awards support students who have financial need. He has also supported the Summer College Opportunity Program in Education, SCOPE, which brings high school students from underrepresented groups to Penn State to learn about careers in education.