Build Your Gift
We are offering a number of naming opportunities in Andrew J. Goodpaster Hall – St. Mary's newest academic facility. Naming opportunities at a variety of levels exist for donors and those whom they may wish to honor. Spaces and available opportunities can be viewed via our interactive floor plans.
Since the $27.5 million cost of Goodpaster Hall was financed by a generous grant from the state of Maryland, your contribution can be directed to provide funding in the following areas: undergraduate research, scholarships, and internships. By naming a space in Goodpaster Hall, you not only support our students, but you also join a growing circle of special friends whose support is making a critical difference to the quality of St. Mary’s.
There are various ways to finance your gift. Most gifts are made as pledges. Pledges allow you to make a generous commitment over a period of up to five years with a flexible payment schedule.
Undergraduate research takes classroom experiences one step further by developing the intellectual and technical skills that will serve students well in any career. Graduates tell us that they are exceptionally well-prepared for employment or post-graduate education. A few examples of our research opportunities:
- A St. Mary's Project (SMP) in the senior year is the capstone of the undergraduate experience. This work is intensive and frequently incurs equipment, travel, and conference fees that are beyond the means of the student.
- The St. Mary's River Project works to increase public awareness and stewardship of the ecological health of the river. Students develop environmental lesson plans and teach them in local classrooms. The final goal of the project is to make the information generated by the project useful for decision-making at the local, state and regional levels.
- Summer Archaeology Field School at Historic St. Mary's City is a hands-on study in a historic setting. Students investigate Native American cultures as well as the development of Maryland's first settlement and 17th century capital.
- Internships allow students to gain valuable work and research experience at numerous national and international organizations. Frequently, these opportunities do not provide financial stipends.
Scholarships help St. Mary's in the competition to attract the best and the brightest students. We must be able to offer a comprehensive financial aid package to prospective students who are academically talented.
Scholarships also provide opportunities for students of diverse socioeconomic backgrounds to attend St. Mary’s. Donors can contribute to a number of established scholarships or create their own endowed program.
Laboratory equipment and space are in high demand at St. Mary’s for three reasons: over the past several years the number of students majoring in the sciences has grown considerably; the State of Maryland has added an educational requirement stipulating that all non-science undergraduates take a laboratory-based course; and, our Honors curriculum requires significant laboratory space for students to conduct an SMP.
The opening of Goodpaster Hall will necessitate the outfitting of the laboratory spaces with specific scientific instrumentation for organic, general, and physical chemistry. At the same time, Schaefer Hall will be refitted to provide research labs for neurobiology, genetics, and molecular biology. Professors seek advanced instrumentation, including a high-speed centrifuge, a UV/Vis Spectrophotometer, a Fluorescent spectrophotometer, and a Conviron incubator.