By Richard Curtis
Media Coordinator
Cincinnati State Technical and Community College’s multi-year, multi-million-dollar campaign to raise funds in honor of the college’s 50th anniversary brought in a record $21 million for scholarships, student supports, new programs and up-to-date equipment for the college through new private and public dollars.
Under leadership of College President Monica Posey, with campaign co-chairs from Cincinnati State’s Board of Trustees and Foundation Board (George Vincent, Mike Haunert, Mark Walton ‘78, and Barbara Turner) the 50th anniversary campaign (FY18-FY22) quietly achieved a historic fundraising record. The challenges of the pandemic did not slow growth of new planned gifts, grants and emergency funds for students, thanks in part to 100% giving participation from Cincinnati State’s Board of Trustees, Foundation, and Alumni Boards.
On May 9, the nationally broadcast PBS NewsHour featured one of the campaign’s signature projects—the CState Accelerate program—a research-validated student success program that helps Pell-eligible community college students stay on track and graduate.
The campaign raised $3.5 million to re-start CState Accelerate, which is based on a model created at the City University of New York (CUNY) that was piloted at Cincinnati State from 2015 to 2018 as part of a rigorous, statewide study conducted by a nationally recognized research organization, MDRC. The results of the study were so positive that the 50th anniversary campaign co-chairs made re-starting the program one of the campaign’s priorities.
The full PBS NewsHour segment (8-½ minutes) features Dr. Posey, CState Accelerate Director Tammie Larkins and CState Accelerate students Blessing Henderson and Micki Harris:
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/community-colleges-pay-student-expenses-beyond-tuition-hoping-to-boost-graduation-rates.
President Monica Posey thanked everyone who participated in the 50th anniversary campaign, saying, “Cincinnati State greatly appreciates the generosity of its boards, lead donor Fifth Third Bank, as well Procter & Gamble, Ohio National, and all the other individuals, foundations and companies that supported our 50th campaign and CState Accelerate program.”
Cincinnati State Chief of Institutional Advancement and Foundation Executive Director Elliott Ruther added, “We also want to recognize Senator Sherrod Brown whose leadership with the support of Congress provided $500K for the CState Accelerate program. We also appreciate his leadership in efforts to address public policy and funding to support all Pell-eligible students with CState Accelerate-type programs.”
Just before the pandemic, Cincinnati State kicked-off the campaign to honor the 50th anniversary of college’s charter from the State of Ohio with an Economic Impact report conducted by EMSI underscoring an annual impact of $650 million thanks largely to the college’s alumni, 85% of whom remain in the Greater Cincinnati region after graduation. The report concluded that 1 out of every 134 jobs in Greater Cincinnati is supported by Cincinnati State and its students, and that students see a high rate of return for their investment in Cincinnati State at 18.7%.
Currently Cincinnati State is in the quiet phase of its next multi-year comprehensive fundraising campaign, which is focused on increasing the college’s ability to meet increased workforce needs in health, aviation maintenance and other essential industries. The new campaign will also support a variety of student needs with scholarships, emergency funds and wrap-around services, including the extension of CState Accelerate.
More community engagement in support of Cincinnati State Technical and Community College students, academic and workforce programs is forthcoming under the leadership of Cincinnati State, Cincinnati State Foundation and Alumni Boards.
To get involved and support Cincinnati State go to https://www.cincinnatistate.edu/give/.
Cincinnati State (www.cincinnatistate.edu) offers more than 140 associate degree, bachelor’s degree and certificate programs. It also offers cooperative education and custom training through its Workforce Development Center.
