The Statler Foundation, long a benefactor of Mercyhurst University, has awarded a grant of $118,579 to the university’s hospitality program, which just this past year took the name of the Statler Department of Hospitality Management. The latest allocation is part of a five-year, $1 million pledge to the hospitality management department, of which $550,000 has been received to date.
Department Chair Beth Ann Sheldon expressed gratitude for the Statler Foundation’s generous gift, which she said would be applied toward supporting program initiatives and student scholarships.
The Statler Foundation was instrumental in providing funds for construction of the newest building on the Erie campus: the Center for Academic Engagement, which houses the hospitality program.
Daryl Georger, associate professor and coordinator of external relations for hospitality management, who is credited with cultivating the 15-year relationship between Mercyhurst and the Statler Foundation, said, “The foundation has allowed us to build a new facility where the students have the ability to learn on the newest and the best equipment that is available today.”
Besides Mercyhurst, the foundation recently awarded the following grants and scholarships, totaling $1.3 million, according to foundation Chairman Peter J. Fiorella Jr.: Paul Smith’s College, $150,275; Trocaire College, $145,000; Olmsted Center for the Impaired, $135,000; Erie Community College, $115,000; Rochester Institute of Technology, $80,812; SUNY Buffalo State, $70,274; Johnson & Wales University, $66,426; Florida International University, $51,481; Niagara County Community College, $30,000; Purdue University, $20,000; Cornell University, $20,000; Pennsylvania State University, $18,606; Michigan State University, $11,987; and Monroe Community College, $10,000. Niagara University was the largest recipient. A total of $180,000 was given as scholarships to hospitality students, and $100,000 was allocated for support of the hospitality programs and seminars for international leaders in the field.
