Colby alumnus donates $2.5M for Maine student scholarships
A former corporate attorney for Scott Paper and S.D. Warren has donated $2.5 million to Colby College in Waterville to support financial aid for students from Maine.
Steve Ford, a Gardiner native who graduated from Colby in 1968, said the donation was spurred by his own experience. Ford now lives in Glen Mill, Pa., and is a seasonal resident of Gardiner.
“Colby helped me financially so I was able to attend,” Ford said in a Colby news release. “It was important to me that the college invested in me, so I want to give back.”
The donation from Ford and his wife, Mary, brings to $3.5 million the amount he’s donated to the school over the years.
Ford is also a member of the Colby Alumni Council Executive Committee, president of his class and its 50th reunion chairman. His father, William Ford, and son, Bill Ford, are also Colby graduates.
Colby President David A. Greene said that the Fords “are making a remarkable difference at Colby,” adding that the donation helps support the college’s mission to ensure it is accessible to students from all backgrounds. “We are especially grateful that this gift supports Colby’s commitment to the students from our home state of Maine,” he said.
Ford spent nearly 20 years of his career as a corporate attorney Scott Paper and S.D. Warren, working with their Maine operations and timberlands.
Colby said it offers about $6 million per year in financial aid to students from Maine, who make up about 10% of the student population of 1,800. There are 211 Maine students at Colby, with 53 Mainers scheduled to graduate in May.
Under a recent expansion of its financial aid program, Colby guarantees that for families with an income of $60,000 or less, the expected parent or guardian contribution will be $0. The median household income in Maine is $53,079.
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