Marshall University president donates $50 million, seeks to eliminate student debt by 2037

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. (WBOY) — Marshall University President Brad D. Smith and First Lady Alys Smith have donated $50 million to the school with the goal of eliminating student debt.

The gift is in support of the “Marshall For All” program, which helps students from lower-income backgrounds go through college without student loan debt. President Smith and the university have the goal of ensuring all students can graduate from Marshall debt-free by 2037, the university’s 200th anniversary.

President Smith spoke with 12 News about the donation, hoping that it can be the start of a $350 million fundraising campaign.

“Alys and I, as part of our foundation, have always supported education. Particularly those who are coming from adverse situations or first in their family to go to college,” Smith said. “But this was a chance for us to step up and say, ‘Let’s show people that we’re so excited and committed by what we’re saying, that we’re going to jumpstart this effort.’”

In addition to eliminating debt for students at Marshall, Smith also hopes to provide an accessible and quality education to students whose circumstances may not allow them that opportunity otherwise.

“We have been overlooked and underappreciated in Appalachia and so our goal is to shine a light on Appalachia and Marshall in particular and then to level the playing field to give every student who has the aspiration and the grit to try the opportunity to come to Marshall to get that degree and go out and shock the world and show them just who we are,” Smith said.

Smith hopes that this initiative will create a “movement” among other institutions of higher education.