Invest In CUNY

Bronx Community College was chartered in April 1957 and opened its doors to 123 students in February 1959. It occupies a beautiful 43- acre campus overlooking the Harlem River and featuring the architectural masterpieces of Stanford White and Marcel Breuer. It is the home to the Hall of Fame for Great Americans, the nation’s first hall of fame. As it enters its second half-century, the college serves over 9,000 students, many of whom are first-generation college attendees from lowincome neighborhoods in the Bronx and Upper Manhattan. With a core dedication to liberal learning, Bronx Community College offers associate degrees and certificate programs in over 30 specialties. It strives to prepare students to live within, profit from and contribute to a 21st-century global environment marked by diversity, change and expanded opportunities for learning and growth. A milestone will be reached in 2011 with the opening of the North Instructional Building and Library. Designed by the renowned architect Robert A.M. Stern and part of a master plan for a new student-centered quad, this will be a stunning facility with classroom and study space suited to a variety of disciplines.

Philanthropic Support FY00-FY09 — $ 8,051,687
Projected Philanthropy Target through FY2015 — $15,000,000

Philanthropic support totaled more than $8 million. Contributions supported student scholarships, educational initiatives, faculty development, technology advances and campus infrastructure and maintenance.

Gift Highlights

Look Who's Investing in Bronx Community College

Elias Karmon

Known affectionately as “Dr. Bronx,” Elias Karmon was among the civic leaders who with Morris Meister established Bronx Community College in 1957. He was a charter member of the BCC Foundation and over the years, he never failed to respond with extreme generosity to any call for help. No one has been as important a supporter of Bronx Community College than the late Dr. Karmon. He will forever be an inspiration to the BCC family and to all who dedicate themselves to improving his beloved Bronx and their own lives.

Walter Marin, N.C.A.R.B.

As chair of the Bronx Community College Foundation for the past four years, Walter Marin has made significant unrestricted gifts to BCC and also has been a force in getting corporate support for the college. Mr. Marin has said of his commitment, “Abigail Adams once wrote: ‘Learning is not attained by chance; it must be sought with ardor and attended to with diligence.’ With the upcoming comprehensive campaign, I am confident that the collective efforts of our team will achieve the goals set forth: to help secure the necessary resources for more students pursuing a higher education.”

The Marie Nesbitt Promise Prize

The Marie Nesbitt Promise Prize was established in 2007 by alumna Vikki L. Pryor, president and CEO of SBLI USA Mutual Life Insurance Co. The prize was created in memory of her grandmother. A great-granddaughter of slaves, Ms. Nesbitt taught everyone she touched to stand up for what they believed in and, most of all, never to give up. The intent is to foster a legacy of giving in support of young people working to achieve their dreams.

The Promise Prize is awarded annually to one or two BCC students who have demonstrated exceptional academic achievement and professional promise. Promise Prizes also are awarded to graduates of Newark’s public high schools, the State University of New York at Buffalo and the University of Illinois at Chicago. Promise Prize recipients form a cadre of dedicated young people who are expected to mentor and develop the next set of leaders, foster and maintain a vibrant network, give back to the community and schools through service, ensure the continued viability of this endeavor and promote learning and scholarship. Kojo Wallace ’08 was the first recipient of this prize. He won national recognition for his work with Associate Prof. Charles Maliti researching strains of rice that absorb heavy metals — a crucial concern for African agriculture. A Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Scholar, he is a student at Cornell University.