Student Emergency Fund
$800,000 Matching Fundraising Campaign
Dakota County Technical College is embarking on a mission to support its students through the establishment of the “Endowment for Employment,” a fundraising effort designed to raise $800,000 in donations for student emergency grants, which are one-time funds available to DCTC students experiencing some form of financial hardship.
“As DCTC celebrates its 40th Anniversary in 2010, our faculty, staff and alumni are looking back with great pride at the accomplishments of the past four decades,” said DCTC President Ronald E. Thomas. “With that same sense of commitment, the DCTC community is also looking ahead and making preparations for guiding the college into the next 40 years and beyond.”
Lee and Barbara Kopp of Edina, Minn., have challenged DCTC to raise $400,000 by the end of the college’s 40th Anniversary year. If DCTC is successful, the Kopps will provide the college with a matching grant for the same amount, resulting in the establishment of an $800,000 Endowment for Employment that will offer emergency grants to DCTC students in need.
“Establishing the Endowment for Employment has become one of the college’s top priorities,” reported DCTC Vice President Sharon LaComb. “The goal is to create an endowment that will sustain the emergency grant program well into the future.”
In 2004, the Council for Resource Development, an affiliate of the American Association of Community Colleges, honored Lee and Barbara Kopp as a Benefactor of the Year for their generous support of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system. The chairman and CEO of Kopp Investment Advisors, Kopp often cites a $200 scholarship he received in 1952 as the key to his success as the first in his family to attend college.
“The importance of supporting students through scholarships and emergency funds cannot be overstated,” said Thomas. “Recognizing the tremendous value of student emergency grants, the Kopp Family Foundation provided the annual contributions that helped establish the college’s emergency grant program. By committing to a $400,000 matching grant, Lee and Barbara Kopp are giving the DCTC community the opportunity to create a powerful resource for our most vulnerable students while helping advance our mission of ‘Education for Employment’ for years to come.”
Please, contact DCTC Vice President Sharon LaComb at 651-423-8293 or sharon.lacomb@dctc.edu for more information on the Endowment for Employment.
