USM launches public phase of $46M fundraising campaign

The University of Southern Maine said Wednesday it was launching the public phase of its largest fundraising initiative ever.

The university’s Great University Campaign has raised $39.5 million toward its $46 million goal.

The campaign, now in its third and final year, is inviting public participation. It will fund scholarships, programs and major capital projects, the Portland university said in a press release.

“The success of this campaign will transform the student experience at the University of Southern Maine,” USM  President Jacqueline Edmondson said.

Major construction projects are under way. They include Portland Commons, the first-ever residence hall on the Portland campus; a new, green campus quad, named the “Bean Green” in recognition of a campaign donation from L.L.Bean; and a new campus center for student and employer engagement.

At the launch of the public phase, Edmondson said the new campus center will be named the McGoldrick Center for Career & Student Success, in honor of benefactors Carolyn and Richard McGoldrick.

Richard McGoldrick co-chaired USM’s 2004-08 Transforming USM campaign, which funded the creation of the Abromson and Wishcamper Centers on the Portland campus. In 2017, the McGoldricks launched the USM Promise Scholarship Program and fundraising campaign, which now annually serves 100 first-generation USM students from Maine, who have been recommended by youth-development organizations statewide. 

Recently, the McGoldricks made a $2 million philanthropic commitment toward student support programs at USM and have leveraged their own giving to help raise nearly $10 million for the Promise Scholarship program.

“No one has done more to support student success at USM than Carolyn and Dick McGoldrick,” said USM Foundation President and CEO Ainsley Wallace. 

Wallace said she expects the campaign to reach and exceed its goal before June 2023. 

Initiated in July 2020, the campaign focuses on four fundraising priorities:

• $11 million for scholarships and student financial resources 
• $25 million for a new Center for the Arts as a new home for USM’s Osher School of Music, and integrating music and the visual arts on the Portland campus
• $5 million for programs supporting academic and athletic programs and facilities across all departments
• $5 million to complete the energy-efficient McGoldrick Center for Career & Student Success