You don't have to go to college to do Something Amazing - Calvin Tyler !

 A COLLEGE DROPOUT DOES SOMETHING AMAZING!

He and his wife give THE LARGEST EVER PRIVATE DONATION FROM AN ALUMNUS TO MORGAN STATE UNIVERSITY, USA.

 

“Debt can be extremely crippling to someone trying to get ahead in life,” Calvin Tyler said recently. He should know. “As a young man he had to drop out of college in his hometown of Baltimore, USA, because he could not afford tuition.”

Who is Calvin Tyler? Why is his life story important enough for a feature story to be carried on ABC News, Friday February 26, 2021? And in The Guardian on MSN.com, abc7NY, Baltimore Times and other news outlets?

In 1961 Tyler enrolled in Morgan State College (now Morgan State University) to study business administration. That was an important step for him as “he was the first in his family to attend college and had hopes of becoming the first to receive a college degree.”

But in 1963, his high hopes were dashed. There was not enough money for him to continue his studies…..he had to leave College.

According to the article Tyler’s next move was to take a job as a driver for United Parcel Service (UPS) in Baltimore. Eschewing any bitterness or resentment that could have darkened his mind, he worked diligently. Ultimately he became the senior vice president of US operations. Next he joined the Board of Directors of the company. He had done well. Years passed. In 1998 Calvin Tyler retired.

Was that the end of Tyler’s association with Morgan State University? Did he forget the dream he once had of receiving a College degree? Was there some way to keep the dream alive – perhaps in the lives of others?

Yes, there was! In 2002 he and his wife established the Calvin and Tina Tylor Endowed Scholarship Fund at Morgan State University.

The fund “would provide full-tuition scholarships for select need-based students in Baltimore.”

In 2016 the couple pledged $5 million to the fund. It was, at the time, the largest such gift in the history of Morgan State University.

Then came the nightmare of the pandemic, COVID-19. Many students and their families in the USA faced financial hardships.

Tyler was keenly aware of the difficult situation. “My wife and I have become keenly aware of the effect that the pandemic has had on a number of young people trying to get an education and we have the resources to help a lot of young people,” Tyler said in a statement on Monday February 22, 2021, through the University.

The couple are therefore increasing their commitment at Morgan, offering more full tuition scholarships so that young people can graduate from college and enter the next stage of their life debt-free.

To benefit from the scholarships students “must meet certain financial criteria and maintain a minimum GPA requirement of 2.5” a statement from the school said.

“Morgan State University is the largest of Maryland’s historically black colleges and universities. 90% of the students receive financial aid.”

In Mr. Tyler’s opinion, “reliance on government loans is just not the answer.”

“We just want to help as many young people as we can to get an education,” he said.

US$20 million to endow students needing financial aid is “the largest ever private donation from an alumnus to Morgan State University.”

David Wilson, President of Morgan State was ecstatic. “Morgan is so proud to call this son and daughter of the great city of Baltimore our own and through their historic giving the doors of higher education will most certainly be kept open for generations of aspiring leaders whose financial shortfalls may have kept them from realizing their academic dreams.”

The Tyler’s transformative commitment is a remarkable example of altruism with great purpose.

” We are forever indebted to the Tyler’s,” President Wilson said.

                                  ===000===