The University of Southern Maine Foundation has announced a $50,000 gift from Hannaford Supermarkets to support completion of the McGoldrick Center for Career & Student Success on USM’s Portland Campus. The company is among a group of leading employers who are founding sponsors of the new Center, which is scheduled to open this coming September.
The McGoldrick Center Sponsorship Program offers employer partners like Hannaford exceptional visibility, brand recognition, and promotion opportunities in a central location on the USM Portland campus. The company is sponsoring an interview room in the Career & Employment Hub on the Center’s second floor, where students can connect with prospective employers or meet with their career counselors. As founding sponsors, Hannaford will enjoy a variety of benefits aimed at amplifying connections between employers and USM.
“At Hannaford, we’re committed to creating pathways that foster career growth and development,” said Ericka Dodge, director of external communications and community relations for Hannaford Supermarkets. “We’re pleased to support the McGoldrick Center for Career and Student Success, which will undoubtedly have a tremendously positive impact on University of Southern Maine students as they prepare to enter the workforce.”
Ainsley Wallace, President & CEO of the USM Foundation, said, “Hannaford has been an invaluable partner in diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives at the University of Southern Maine. We are thrilled to count them among the founding sponsors of the McGoldrick Center, which provides access to career opportunities for all USM students, enhances student-employer engagement, and supports a strong and talented future workforce for Maine.”
The new McGoldrick Center will serve as the hub of community engagement at the heart of USM’s transformed Portland campus––a space for connections and collaboration between students, faculty, alumni, and employers. The Center’s second floor will be home to USM’s expanded Career & Employment Hub, where the employer community intersects with students in the academic community. The third floor of the Center is dedicated to cultivating student leadership opportunities and connections with spaces set aside for USM’s Student Government Association, Diversity Center, student organizations, and more.
With dining facilities, meeting and conference rooms, student activity rooms, and the expanded Career Hub, the Center is among the most environmentally conscious buildings on USM’s Portland campus. The three-story, 42,000 square-foot space is sustainably designed to achieve LEED (Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design) Silver certification. It will overlook the new campus quad, named the “Bean Green,” in recognition of a gift from L.L.Bean, and sits adjacent to Portland Commons, the first residence hall on USM’s Portland campus.