“It is my great pleasure to announce that Borough of Manhattan Community College has a new friend,” said BMCC President Antonio Pérez at a June 4, 2014 signing ceremony between BMCC and Santander Universities, a division of Santander Bank, N.A.
“As a former U.S. university president said to me, ‘Talent is evenly distributed throughout the world, opportunities are not,” said Santander Universities U.S. Director Eduardo Garrido, who joined President Pérez at the signing table.
“At BMCC, you do such a remarkable job providing opportunities to more underprivileged students, from over 150 countries … We truly believe our future leaders are global. Countries that perform better than others, are the ones with more access to higher education.”
The signing ceremony was held in the Shirley Fiterman Art Center in BMCC’s Fiterman Hall, before an audience of Santander and BMCC administrators and staff, and was followed by a luncheon in the gallery space.
Benefiting higher education worldwide
Santander Bank has 14,000 branches worldwide, and its Santander Universities Global Division provides funding for teaching and research, international cooperation, knowledge and technology transfer, entrepreneurial initiatives, student exchange and innovation.
In 2013, Santander Universities provided funding for 4,105 new projects and 37,712 scholarships worldwide, as well as over 100 projects and over 1,000 scholarships in the United States.
Strengthening services at BMCC
“Through generous grants of over $1.3 billion dollars around the world, Santander Universities supports the academic careers of tens of thousands of college and university students every year,” said President Pérez in his signing remarks.
The grant will be distributed to BMCC over a five-year period, he said, through the college’s annual fundraising gala, and will be used “to strengthen BMCC’s academic management, to facilitate access to our continuing education programs, to bolster our outreach to international students, and overall, to improve the cultural, athletic and academic services that we provide at BMCC.”
“Santander Bank and Santander Universities are a role model for the business community, because they give back,” the President said in closing. “We are very proud to call them our friend. Thank you, from the entire BMCC community.”
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- Santander Universities, a supporter of higher education around the world, is a division of Santander Bank
- BMCC President Antonio Pérez and Santander Universities Director Eduardo Garrido sign a gift agreement to benefit the college over five years
- The ceremony is held in the Shirley Fiterman Art Center
