$1M gift goes to YSU for center

Staff report

YOUNGSTOWN

The James and Coralie Centofanti Center of Health and Welfare for Vulnerable Populations will be created at Youngstown State University under a $1 million gift announced today.

The new Center, funded with a gift from the James and Coralie Centofanti Charitable Foundation, will help expand and improve the ability of the YSU Bitonte College of Health and Human Services to positively impact health and welfare challenges throughout the region.

“I want to thank the Centofanti Foundation for this generous gift,” YSU President Cynthia E. Anderson said. “But even more important, I want to thank and commend the Foundation for its support in improving the health and welfare of our community.”

James Centofanti of Canfield, a successful business owner, philanthropist and horseman, died in 2010. His wife, Coralie, died in 1999. Centofanti was a longtime member of the board of directors of Farmers National Bank in Canfield, a supporter of numerous educational and community- based activities in and around the Canfield area and the recipient of numerous awards for his humanitarian efforts.

“Jim always had a soft spot for the underdog and the underprivileged, and it was reflected during his life through his generosity and his hands-on involvement in working to improve the lives of people, especially those with special needs,” said Mark Graham, executive vice president of Farmers National Bank and chairman of the Distribution Committee of the Centofanti Foundation. “He would be very proud to have his family’s name associated with a Center that focuses on improving the health and welfare of people throughout the Mahoning Valley.”

The new James and Coralie Centofanti Center of Health and Welfare for Vulnerable Populations at YSU will provide student scholarships, internship stipends, graduate assistantships, faculty research grants and work force development initiatives designed to evaluate and respond to the needs of the region’s health and human-service organizations and agencies, said Joe Mosca, dean of the YSU Bitonte College of Health and Human Services. The Bitonte College offers more than 25 majors in criminal justice, health professions, human ecology, human performance and exercise science, nursing, physical therapy and social work.

“The Center will enhance the level of engagement between our students, our faculty and professionals employed in health and human service organizations throughout our region,” Mosca said.

The Center’s functions will include:

The Centofanti Symposium, featuring nationally recognized speakers on topics regarding the needs of vulnerable populations.

Undergraduate and graduate scholarships for students in the Bitonte College of Health and Human Services pursuing careers that will impact at-risk populations in the region and beyond.

Undergraduate stipends and graduate assistantships for students engaged in service or research addressing health and human services concerns experienced by regional organizations and/or their service recipients.

Support for faculty, including research grants and educational seminars.

Educational training and work force development to engage YSU faculty and students in local social service and nonprofit agencies conducting research and expanding their effectiveness in working with at-risk/vulnerable population groups.