Worcester State University is launching the largest fundraising campaign in its history, a $30 million effort aimed at expanding financial aid, modernizing academic facilities and preparing students for a changing workforce.
The three-year Believe in Beyond campaign begins with a $1 million gift from Worcester State alumna Mary Cotter-Lemoine and her husband, David Lemoine, to help working adults already employed in public schools earn bachelor’s degrees and become licensed teachers.
University President Barry Maloney announced the campaign Monday, describing it as an investment both in Worcester State students and the Central Massachusetts workforce.
“Through Worcester State University’s Believe in Beyond campaign, we are taking bold action to ensure our students thrive during their time on campus and graduate ready to lead,” Maloney said in the announcement. “Our students build successful careers from a foundation of academic excellence. These new investments will accelerate that momentum, elevating our graduates and the regional economy to new heights.”
The campaign, which follows Worcester State’s 150th anniversary, is organized around three broad priorities: reducing financial barriers and expanding experiential learning; investing in science, health and research programs; and preparing students for a workplace increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence.
The largest fundraising priority focuses on scholarships and other programs intended to make college more accessible. The university also plans to invest in internships, co-ops and study-away opportunities, along with services for first-generation students.
Another portion of the campaign will target Worcester State’s science and health programs, including new wet laboratories, undergraduate research opportunities and the Rosen Cancer Awareness Program.
The third area includes plans to modernize the university library, establish endowed distinguished professorships, expand support services and the Latino Education Institute and build AI literacy across academic disciplines.
The $1 million gift from the Lemoines puts a particular focus on one of the region’s persistent workforce needs: teachers.
The couple had previously supported 26 students in Worcester State’s Paraeducator Program. Their new gift will establish the Mary Cotter-Lemoine Teacher Education Support Fund for Adult Learners, expanding assistance for working school professionals seeking undergraduate degrees in elementary or early childhood education and state teaching licenses.
For Cotter-Lemoine, a 1996 Worcester State graduate, the program reflects her own path to the classroom. She attended the university as an adult learner and career changer while raising three children.
“Growing up in the 1950s with three sisters there was little emphasis in my family on doing well in school or going to college, and we didn’t,” Cotter-Lemoine said in the university’s announcement. “In May 1992, at the end of my first semester at Worcester State I realized I was capable of being successful in college. The flexibility to schedule classes around my family’s lives (three children and a working husband) was an essential component of my success. As was the support of the library staff, math lab and both the English and Education Department professionals. We hope that by making this gift more adult learners will also be able to discover their potential at Worcester State.”
Maloney said the gift could help move experienced paraprofessionals already working with students into licensed teaching positions.
“Worcester State University is incredibly grateful to Mary and David for their vision, generosity and dedication to supporting teachers,” Maloney said in the announcement. “By believing in our talented and hardworking paraprofessional students, they are opening the door of opportunity for generations of future teachers who have unparalleled classroom experience. Our public school systems need well qualified teachers more than ever.”
Worcester State is also positioning the broader campaign as an investment in the regional workforce. According to the university, nine in 10 of its graduates remain in the region to build their careers, while 98% of graduates are employed or attending graduate school within three months of graduation.
The university said its graduates have among the highest earnings five years after graduation among Massachusetts public universities and the lowest student debt among the state’s public universities, citing state data and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard.
Worcester State was also named a 2026 Best College by Money magazine and was included in the 2027 edition of The Princeton Review’s Best in the Northeast Colleges. The university said it is the only Massachusetts state university to receive the latter recognition for 22 consecutive years.
Worcester State Foundation Chair Kevin Campbell said the campaign is intended to provide resources in areas where private donations can supplement university funding.
“Our campaign was designed with student success as the central focus and there is no better time than now to invest in their future,” Campbell said in the announcement. “Our university does incredible work in preparing students for entry into professional positions, but there are areas where donor provided funds will close resource gaps and create a path for expanding learning opportunities and raising the quality of their educational experience. State of the art laboratories, more comprehensive experiential learning activities, AI education and additional scholarships to keep students on track to reach their goals are well within reach with our Believe in Beyond campaign.”
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