Penn State’s Board of Trustees voted on Thursday to rename the university’s College of Nursing after a Pennsylvania couple donated $27 million to the school.
Effective immediately, the school will be known as “The Ross & Carol Nese College of Nursing.”
The Neses’ $27.125 million gift is the college’s largest donation and second largest to an academic unit in Penn State’s history, according to the university. Their donation will be coupled with $17.9 million in matching funds from Penn State, providing a combination of endowed and outright funding for scholarships, faculty and program support, and facilities and equipment.
“Penn State is deeply grateful to Ross and Carol for their remarkably generous and timely gift,” Penn State President Eric Barron said in a release. “There is no better way for us to fulfill our land-grant mission of serving the public good than to prepare new nurses to join that critical workforce — and the Neses’ gift will allow the College of Nursing to dramatically increase the number of health-care professionals who graduate from Penn State each year, prepared to meet the needs of patients and communities.
Ross Nese is a founder and board member of Grane Healthcare, which manages long-term care facilities throughout Pennsylvania.
“The Neses’ gift will be profoundly transformational for the college,” Dean Laurie Badzek said. “I know they share our deep concern about the nursing shortage that has been developing in our country for some time and recognize the significant and growing role that nurses with excellent preparation play in the delivery of outstanding health care.
The gift will be celebrated at a naming ceremony in August.
Prior to Thursday, the most recent Penn State college to be renamed was the Bellisario College of Communications in 2017 thanks to a $30 million endowment from alum Donald P. Bellisario.
