Since becoming president and CEO of the University of Southern Maine Foundation, Corey Hascall has overseen a period of record fundraising and philanthropic growth. Working alongside USM President Jacqueline Edmondson, the foundation staff and board, donors and community partners, she helped secure a record $18.5 million in philanthropic support last year, advancing transformational priorities including the Crewe Center for the Arts, while positioning the foundation for its next comprehensive campaign.
Other achievements include reaching a milestone $20 million endowment for Promise Scholars, a program that will now annually support 100 first-generation students; fundraising to make USM Maine’s only certified All-Steinway university, and completing fundraising for the MEMIC John T. Leonard Endowed Chair in Risk Management & Insurance.
The 1999 USM alum joined the foundation in 2017, its founding year, and became president in 2024.
Mainebiz: How did your career background prepare you for this job?
Corey Hascall: I spent two decades in political strategy and communications, managing state and federal campaigns and multi-million-dollar budgets. Those experiences taught me how to build coalitions, communicate a compelling vision, and inspire people to invest in something bigger than themselves. I also worked in the private sector, leading community relations and reputation management for corporate clients in Maine and across the country. That experience strengthened my ability to navigate complexity and build relationships.
MB: What was USM like when you joined the foundation?
CH: There was so much pent-up energy after years of volatility following the 2008 recession. People believed in USM and wanted to see it thrive. The university embraced a bold vision for transforming the Portland campus. A University of Maine System bond, paired with strategic philanthropic investments, brought that vision to life and sparked a transformation that continues today under President Edmondson’s leadership.
MB: What accomplishments make you proudest?
CH: What inspires me most is creating opportunity. Whether it’s fundraising for the McGoldrick Center for Career & Student Success and the Crewe Center for the Arts or building the Promise Scholars endowment, the goal is the same: helping students realize what’s possible.
Nearly 40% of USM students are the first in their families to attend college. When they learn in spaces designed for them, or receive the support to graduate debt-free, they get a powerful message: “You belong here and you are worthy.” Over the past nine years, I’ve watched Promise Scholars earn their degrees, launch careers and change the trajectory of their families. That’s the kind of impact that stays with me.
I’m also incredibly proud of what we’ve built together through the USM Foundation. Since its creation in 2017, our staff, board, volunteers and university leadership have transformed USM’s relationship with philanthropy, helping catalyze the physical and academic transformation taking place across the university. Together, we’ve built an organization that will strengthen USM and create opportunity for generations of students to come.
MB: Examples?
CH: The impact becomes real when you see it in individual students. One student came to Maine from South Africa with his parents and four siblings. With support from their church, the family rebuilt their lives, and he became a USM Promise Scholar. Today he’s in his third year of law school, pursuing his dream of becoming an attorney.
Jacob Curtis, another Promise Scholar, grew up in rural Maine and never imagined college was possible. He found a home at USM and is now pursuing a master’s degree in data science with a focus in AI. The talent was always there — he just needed the chance to pursue it.
MB: What’s on the horizon?
CH: We’re on our way to a $100 million endowment. That would put USM in another league, and I’m excited to help us get there.
Transformation is a team sport — we say that a lot at the USM Foundation. I have the privilege of working with a team of extraordinary, mission-driven professionals and an outstanding board. None of this happens without them or the support of President Edmondson.
