When the Harold Alfond Foundation challenged MMA alumni to reach 20 percent participation in the Annual Fund, they had one goal in mind. The Foundation presented MMA with a golden opportunity: reach 20 percent participation and earn an award of $750,000 to be invested in the scholarship endowment, which would serve students forever. They set a June 30, 2020 deadline for the challenge, the end of the Academy\u2019s 2020 fiscal year.<\/p>\n
The foundation\u2019s goal was clear: to ensure that alumni would participate in the sustainability of their school so that Maine Maritime \u2013 and its students \u2013 could maintain their competitive edge into the future.<\/p>\n
Alumni became motivated to meet this challenge. Some noted it\u2019s a great rate of return, since gifts as small as $1 count toward participation: if we invest a dollar, collectively we can earn $750,000 for our school.<\/p>\n
MMA\u2019s Advancement staff saw a surge in volunteerism as several alums stepped forward wanting to help spread the word among classmates. These volunteers have used social media, email and phone calls to ensure their fellow alumni know about the importance of earning this $750,000 grant.<\/p>\n
Currently, the Alumni Advancement Volunteers corps has 28 members. To date the alumni group has made a tremendous impact. These alumni volunteers include: Mike Ames \u201977, Rich Armstrong \u201986, Eric Brown \u201905, Larry Burrill \u201977, Pat Carney \u201986, Omar Chaar \u201909, Bob Curtis \u201990, Dave Fenderson \u201956, Bill Full \u201976, John Gillis \u201972, Chris Gilman \u201916, Jeff Ivory \u201995, Jake Jacobs \u201985, James Jeffcoat \u201905, Russ Kniehl \u201966, Eddie Ma \u201918, Bill Mahoney \u201956, Brian Marston \u201983, Wayne Norton \u201986, Eliza Pingree \u201915, Bill Sawyer \u201957, Tom Shannon \u201982, Carrie Stewart \u201900, Jay Stewart \u201900, Andrew Strosahl \u201905, Fred Therrien \u201971, Joe Valliere \u201999 and Thomas White \u201918.<\/p>\n
Fiscal Year 2019 ended two weeks ago (6\/30\/19) with an annual participation rate among alumni that surpassed 16 percent, up from the Fiscal Year 2018 figure of 13.28 percent. This jump in alumni participation is exciting to note because it gets MMA incrementally closer to reaching the 20% goal. It would take just a slightly higher increase during Fiscal Year 2020 to earn the Harold Alfond Foundation\u2019s grant for the scholarship endowment and win the Harold Alfond challenge.<\/p>\n
Members of the Alumni Advancement Volunteer corps are excited about the prospects for the coming fiscal year. Volunteer Rich Armstrong \u201986 says, \u201cThere is no doubt in my mind we can get to 20 percent alumni participation in the year 2020. If you challenge an MMA grad, he\/she is going to meet or exceed your expectations. For three years running we have done exactly that with the MMA vs. Mass Maritime and SUNY Maritime alumni challenge. MMA grads like to win and will prove it to you every time.\u201d<\/p>\n
Scholarship funds have become increasingly important to MMA\u2019s ability to maintain its competitiveness with similar institutions. The Alfond Foundation\u2019s $750,000 scholarship grant, if awarded, would greatly enhance the academy\u2019s ability to offer competitive financial aid packages at the level currently offered by other maritime colleges.<\/p>\n