On Tuesday, Antioch College announced it has received two large grants totaling 7 million dollars. The gift includes a one million dollar grant from an anonymous donor, and a $6 million grant from the Morgan Family Foundation, the largest gift the College has received since its 2009 revival and separation from Antioch University.
At a community meeting announcing the grant, Antioch College President, Mark Roosevelt said the large donation was a vote of confidence from the foundation.
"They believe in our future. It’s not about the past, it’s not about nostalgia. They think we’ve made enough progress that we were deserving of this kind of support at this time.”
One other announcement came from the college president – that he will be leaving when his contract expires in 8 months. Roosevelt says the college has made a lot of progress in the almost 5 years he’s spent at Antioch.
“It happened because a lot of people came together and made it possible," he said. "We’ve received donations from 8500 people—over forty thousand donations during that time, the volunteers who come here to work on the campus, the students who took the risks to join this, the faculty who’ve given up safer places for their careers. A lot of people have taken a lot of risks to make a go of this.”
The college closed in 2008 and remained closed for three years. After reopening in 2011, Antioch College continues work to regain its accreditation. Roosevelt says he’s confident that will happen, and will see the college through that process and its transition with a new president.
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