Bedford Hills College Program Receives Gift, Confers 13 Degrees

(New York, NY) A mission of Marymount Manhattan College is to educate a socially and economically diverse population. One of Marymount Manhattan’s exemplary programs recently received a gift from one of its supporters.

Valerie Rowe, a friend and supporter of Marymount Manhattan College, pledged to match gifts to the Bedford Hills College Program (BHCP) endowment up to $1,000,000. 

“I am passionate about supporting student access to education,” Rowe wrote in a recent letter to the College, “and I am deeply interested in the Bedford Hills Program.”

Rowe’s pledge supports the need to increase student access to higher education, one of the initiatives of This is the Day, the campaign for Marymount Manhattan. The campaign, which aims to raise $25 million, will expand MMC facilities, enhance the learning environment and advance academic excellence.

Through the Bedford Hills College Program, MMC offers college and college-preparatory coursework to inmates at Bedford Hills Correctional Facility, a New York State maximum-security prison for women. The BHCP consists of non-credit and credit-bearing courses, awarding Associate of Arts degrees in Social Science and Bachelor of Arts degrees in Sociology.

On May 22, the Bedford Hills College Program conferred three bachelor’s and 10 associate’s degrees to graduates at the commencement ceremony. The guest speaker was Lynn Nottage, an award-winning playwright who received a 2007 “Genius Award” from the John D. Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. The BHCP, which Marymount Manhattan has been managing since 2004, has conferred more than 100 degrees.

Cindy Mercer, executive director for Academic Achievement at MMC, said support for the program has provided opportunities to create and implement collaborative projects. One such project is the “Inside / Out Small Works Art Exhibition” which will be on display in the facility visiting room at Bedford Hills until June 30. The exhibit features art work created by students at the Bedford Hills College Program, Marymount Manhattan College and the consortium colleges. The BHCP will also present “Crossing Boarders,” a scholarly and creative conference that encourages the interdisciplinary exchange of ideas among students, staff, alumnae and faculty of MMC, of the consortium colleges, and of the Bedford Hills College Program. The conference will feature panels, papers and presentations and is scheduled October 17 at the Bedford Hills Correctional Facility.

“I hope to further integrate the program into our campus community,” Mercer said. “Over the last two years, the College has made an impressive start through the Crossing Boarders Conference, the inclusion of BHCP students in Honor’s Day, and the newly founded Bedford Hills student club.

Published: May 21, 2008