Looking ahead
In an effort to continue to strengthen our ability to meet the financial needs of both new and enrolled students from the Greater Bridgeport area, the Foundation will continue to expand all facets of its fundraising efforts, including grants and scholarship funding, major gifts, endowments, planned giving, individual donations and corporate contributions.
Efforts will be focused on fueling Phase II of our Corporate Appeal, which we believe has great potential, and effectively marketing the financial benefits of our Charitable Gift Annuity program to prospective donors.
We also plan to build on the success of our signature events, and introduce new fundraisers that will increase the Foundation’s visibility and help to heighten the community’s understanding of the vital role we play at the College and within the community.
Already, plans are well underway for the second annual International Wine Tasting, which will be held on November 18. As it was last year, this gala should prove to be an excellent fundraising vehicle for us, as well as a great opportunity to highlight both the accomplishments and needs of our students.
On April 2, the Foundation will host its first Fashion Show at the Inn at Longshore in Westport. This fundraiser will feature members of our faculty, staff and student body as models of the latest fashions, provided by a major local retailer. We are currently in the process of securing a prominent emcee for the event, which we expect to attract an audience of more than one hundred supporters. Proceeds will provide scholarships and financial awards for our students in need.
We are also enormously gratified to announce that recently, HCC was notified that the College has been selected as one of three community colleges in Connecticut to participate in Achieving the Dream – a grant initiative of national significance designed to address retention issues and increase the success rates of students at community colleges. This grant is funded through the Nellie Mae Education Foundation and the Lumina Foundation for Education.
This national award provides HCC with an investment grant of $50,000 that will be used to form institutional teams; collect and review institutional and student data; study and design strategies for increasing student success; develop customized action plans; and later, to prepare a multi-year implementation proposal. The multi-year implementation grant totaling up to $400,000 would be used over the next four years. Our success in this endeavor will not only give the College national exposure and position HCC to receive additional, national grants, but it will greatly assist students in their successful completion of courses and programs.