New York Cardinal's Scholarship Fund gets $22.5 million donation

Published: 2007-05-24

NEW YORK (CNS) -- A New York philanthropist has donated $22.5 million to the Archdiocese of New York for its inner-city scholarship program, the archdiocese announced May 23. The donation, from former Wall Street investor Robert Wilson, will enable 3,000 children to attend Catholic schools in New York City through the scholarship program launched two years ago to provide needy students with partial- or full-tuition grants. Wilson, an 80-year-old atheist, told reporters after the donation was announced that he had no problem supporting a fund for Catholic school students. "Shunning religious organizations would be abhorrent," he told Bloomberg News. "Keep in mind, I'm helping to pay tuition. The money isn't going directly to the schools." New York Cardinal Edward M. Egan praised Wilson for his "historic and far-sighted support." After learning about Wilson's donation, another donor, who wished to remain anonymous, contributed $4.5 million to the archdiocesan scholarship program. Since it began in 2005 as a partnership with other New York scholarship programs, the Cardinal's Scholarship Fund has awarded 3,700 scholarships with a maximum individual tuition value of $2,100 per year.

Copyright (c) 2007 Catholic News Service /U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. The CNS news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed, including but not limited to such means as framing or any other digital copying or distribution method, in whole or in part without the prior written authority of Catholic News Service .