Former Chair of the Monmouth College Board of Trustees and a 1965 graduate, William Goldsborough and his wife Beverly, have gifted $5 million to the college to accelerate momentum, strengthen student experiences, modernize the campus, and invest in the future. President Dr. Patricia Draves explains a portion of the gift will permanently support Peterson Residence Hall, the current budget, and tear down the fraternity complex:
“Under the facility piece and decrease in liabilities, he is proud of Peterson Hall and gave an endowed gift of $1.5 million just to make sure that facility always stays up to date with furniture, paint, or new carpeting. So, that will be used forever to make sure that is always in the shape we want for our students,” says Dr. Draves.
“Then supporting this years’ budget is part of it and a challenge grant that he is going to do at Scots Day of Giving. Also, helping us tear down the fraternity complex that has been vacant for many years. There are a lot of fond memories and stories behind that fraternity complex, and we will definitely honor those, but this will allow us to make that space opened up for a potential building moving forward. We are looking for that to be a summer project. Right now, we are just working with different construction companies and getting prices,” Dr. Draves adds.
Dr. Draves informs that once the fraternity complex is torn down on campus, it will be an outdoor green space for now.
Focusing on three foundational priorities: expanding opportunity for students, caring for the campus, and positioning Monmouth College for long-term growth, another part of the investment is for a new learning management system, reports Dr. Draves:
“The other part of the gift is really around enhancing the teaching and learning environment for our faculty and our students and so an investment in a new learning management system. That is a platform for how students submit and how they discuss. It makes their transition to college easier and in the avenue of artificial intelligence, how to use that to enhance their learning. Some new classroom technology across the center for Science and Business as well as Wallace Hall. Then the last part is really to support our new brand initiative, ‘Students Ready for Success,’” states Dr. Draves.
Monmouth College’s ‘Students Ready for Success’ platform is built on pillars of a caring community, lessons that last, lifelong connections, and the idea of Monmouth being rooted and growing.
