Chesapeake College exceeded the $3 million fundraising goal of the Setting Sail Campaign. The college has raised $3.26 million to support scholarships, technology and the Health Professions and Athletics Center.

The Setting Sail Campaign launched with three goals: raising funds for the Health Professions and Athletics Center, enhancing campus technology and increasing student scholarships.

“This campaign represents more than $3 million pats on the back for all the work we do at Chesapeake. Raising these funds posed a challenge because the community did not fully understand our level of need,” said Dr. Barbara A. Viniar of surpassing the Setting Sail Campaign goal. “Each dollar is a show of support for our students and their dreams, and is proof of how much the college means to the community.”

Exceeding the fundraising goal is also significant because the feat was accomplished during a recession. Despite an economic downturn which left many organizations with dwindling coffers, donors continued to fund Chesapeake’s campaign.  As the economy improved, Dr. Viniar said, the gift amounts increased.

The campaign’s ambitious goal of building a state-of-the art health career training center and renovating Chesapeake’s athletics facilities,  was achieved when the Health Professions and Athletics Center opening in August of 2015. As the largest building on Chesapeake’s main campus, the facility contains high-fidelity, simulation labs, a fitness center, classrooms, a gymnasium, yoga studio, athletic training facility, locker rooms, lounge areas and a multi-purpose space.

Now a year after the building opened, Dr. Viniar said it is rewarding to see the students and employees benefiting daily from the facility. There is also tremendous pride in watching visitors tour the facility.

“The HPAC is more than an impressive building on our campus, it’s a community asset that is allowing Chesapeake to best prepare healthcare workers able to serve the region,” Dr. Viniar said.  “Every day I walk through the building to see students learning in these wonderful spaces. I also enjoy seeing how impressed our visitors are when they see building and the equipment.”

Support for the goals of the campaign started within the college community. Chesapeake employees, Dr. Viniar said, gave generously to the campaign despite economic challenges that froze their salaries.  That internal commitment helped garner support from area organizations and individuals.

“Setting Sail was a fundraising campaign, but it was also an opportunity for us to build relationships in our community,” Dr. Viniar said. “More people now understand Chesapeake’s role as regional leader in education, economic development and enrichment.  We’ve been able to build ongoing support for our students and programs.

For more information about Advancement at Chesapeake College, please contact Vice President for Institutional Advancement Lucie Hughes at [email protected].