Lourdes Receives Grant Funds

The Welltower Charitable Donor Advised Fund award benefits the Like Me Education Program

SYLVANIA, Ohio – Dr. Vincent Laverick, Ed.D., Chair of the Education Division, is pleased to announce its most recent grant for the Lourdes University Like Me Program. The Welltower Charitable Donor Advised Fund of the Greater Toledo Community Foundation has awarded $3,000 to support the university’s initiative to diversify the educator workforce.

To date, the Like Me Program has received funding from these 10 foundation and corporate partners:

• Greater Toledo Community Foundation, Inc.
• Dr. Gene & Dr. Janet Robinson
• O-I Charities Foundation
• Ohio Deans Compact
• Waite-Brand Foundation
• Mr. & Mrs. Robert C. Savage Fund
• The Patricia Flaherty (McNerney) Seifried Fund
• Signature Bank, N.A.
• Sisters of St. Francis (Sylvania) Foundation Donor Advised Fund
• Welltower Charitable Donor Advised Fund

In addition to foundation and corporate partners, the Lourdes University Like Me Program works closely with four educational partners including Springfield Local Schools, Sylvania Schools, Toledo Public Schools, and Washington Local Schools. In August 2022, the university welcomed its first Like Me Program cohort with seven students. The program’s goals are to recruit cohorts with up to 10 students each year, and upon their graduation from Lourdes, to increase the diversity of the education workforce within our local school districts.

Angelica Johnson, M.A., serves as the Like Me Program Coordinator. Under her leadership, students enrolled in the program receive a monthly stipend, benefit from intensive advising, and are mentored by an educator from one of the partner schools. The aspiring educators also benefit from scholarships and academic support resources.

For more information about the program, contact Ms. Johnson at ajohnson@lourdes.edu.

Lourdes Education Division

Housed within the College of Social Sciences, the Lourdes University Division of Education offers six undergraduate and three graduate degree programs. The University’s Teacher Education Initial Licensure and Advanced Program is accredited by the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) for a period of seven years, fall 2022 to fall 2029.