Funding to benefit low-income students of diverse backgrounds in shared mission to provide equal access to high-quality, global education
NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)–#CambridgeUniversity–Ira Schuman, New York co-manager and vice chairman of Savills, an international real estate services firm based in the United Kingdom, last week presented Professor Dame Madeleine Atkins, President of Cambridge University’s Lucy Cavendish College, and Frank Wu, President of Queens College, City University of New York, with $25,000 in initial funding to support Cambridge University, allowing one graduate from Queens College to attend Lucy Cavendish College to pursue a master’s degree in Cambridge’s 12-month masters program.
Both Queens College and Lucy Cavendish College are committed to serving exceptional students from underrepresented, low-income, and often marginalized communities. The Masters Study Abroad Initiative aims to provide a Queens College graduate with opportunities that will help unlock their potential as they pursue a graduate degree, supporting their ambitions for careers with leading firms, not-for-profit organizations, or as entrepreneurs in the United States.
When Lucy Cavendish College decided to double-down on the school’s search for qualified students from America, Madeleine Atkins and her team first met with several members of the New York business community, including a meeting with Savills’ Schuman and, because Queens College’s mission is so perfectly aligned with that of Lucy Cavendish College’s, a meeting was set with President Wu.
“I especially wish to thank Ira Schuman, for so generously providing the funding for the graduate who will be pursuing their Masters at Lucy Cavendish College on the Cambridge campus,” said President Atkins. “These are students who because of their backgrounds and not in spite of them, possess the special sensitivity, sensibility and passion to succeed at their goals. In addition to doing exceptionally well during their undergraduate course of study at Queens College and having overcome the hurdles of being from low-income households, these exceptional students also will have met the rigorous admissions standards of the University of Cambridge.”
“We are grateful to Savills for its investment in a program at Lucy Cavendish College at the University of Cambridge that will help support our alumni as they pursue graduate studies,” added President Wu. “Our new and developing relationship stays true to Queens College’s values and mission to prepare our students to serve as innovative leaders in a diverse world that they make more equitable and inclusive. We dedicate ourselves to helping them thrive as global citizens by providing a learning community where multiple languages and cultures are part of the everyday social fabric. I’m delighted to know that our graduates will have the opportunity to enact Queens College ideals abroad through this new initiative.”
Lucy Cavendish College is the most diverse and fastest growing of the 31-constituent colleges that make up the University of Cambridge. The college’s mission is to attract and educate exceptional students from disadvantaged, often marginalized communities from within the United Kingdom, as well as from around the world. Over the past 55-years, Lucy Cavendish College has become a beacon for students from diverse backgrounds who together are representative of society, and who are determined to help find solutions to many of the most challenging problems facing humankind – students who are committed to making a lasting impact on the world.
“As a global leader in commercial real estate, we are excited to support this amazing international initiative with Cambridge University’s Lucy Cavendish College that will help to bring a remarkable Queens College graduate to study in the UK,” concluded Schuman. “Making the world a better place is a responsibility we all share.”
About Savills
Savills, a global leader in commercial real estate, specializes in helping organizations find solutions that ensure employee success. The firm’s integrated teams of consultants and brokers serve as advocates for occupier clients, offering services in tenant representation, capital markets, project management, workforce and incentives strategy, and workplace strategy that drives profitability and productivity and boosts the potential of workplaces across the United States and around the world.
About Lucy Cavendish College
Lucy Cavendish College is the fastest growing and most diverse of the 31 constituent colleges within the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom. The College’s mission is to unlock the potential of exceptional students from non-traditional and underrepresented backgrounds who are driven by a desire to make a difference and who are committed to having a positive and lasting impact on society. Founded in 1965, the College is named in honor of Lucy Cavendish, a leading 19th century activist for the reform of women’s education. Originally an institution that transformed the life chances of mature women, the College decided to open those opportunities to students of all ages in 2020 and all genders in 2021. The College is truly a dynamic, inclusive and supportive global community with international students from 80 countries making up a significant proportion of the student population.
About Queens College of the City University of New York
Queens College enjoys a national reputation for its liberal arts and sciences and pre-professional programs. With its graduate and undergraduate degrees, honors programs, and research and internship opportunities, the college helps its students realize their potential in countless ways, assisted by an accessible, award-winning faculty. Located on a beautiful, 80-acre campus in Flushing, the college has been cited by Princeton Review as one of America’s Best Value Colleges for five consecutive years, as well as being ranked a U.S. News and World Report Best College and Forbes Magazine Best Value College thanks to its outstanding academics, generous financial aid packages, and relatively low costs. Visit our homepage to learn more.
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