Financial Aid
For of Those to Whom Much Is Given, Much Is Required
“There are not enough scholarships for all the people who need them to afford college,” says Deborah (“Deb”) Mancini Morrocco ’81, P’10, ’14.
For more than three decades, the Mancini family has invested generously in financial aid at Boston College, supporting students with demonstrated need from 22 cities and towns in their native Rhode Island through more than 170 scholarships. Last year, the family expanded its commitment by creating the Mancini Family Rhode Island Scholars Program, funded through a collection of current-use and endowed gifts, all in support of financial aid—the first of its kind at BC—with preference for students hailing from the Ocean State. The family’s decision to create this scholarship program stems from their motivation to both reduce the financial burden of Rhode Islanders seeking higher education, and also to build a community for this group of BC scholars.
The Mancinis have cherished the opportunity to engage with students at events on campus, such as last fall’s BC vs. North Carolina State football game, the annual Scholarship Dinner, and the beloved Pops on the Heights: The Barbara and Jim Cleary Scholarship Gala, to which they are also generous benefactors. Deb’s father, Raymond Mancini Sr. ’60, MBA’11, P’81, ’83, ’84, says their experiences meeting the students they support was an important inspiration to further augment their philanthropy. “It’s an emotional thing when you meet these young people, so bright and promising, and they tell you that they don’t know how they would have been able to go to college if it hadn’t been for a scholarship from BC,” he reflects. “It makes you want to do all that you can.”
In her remarks to scholarship donors and recipients at the 2017 Scholarship Dinner, Deb shared one of her father’s favorite quotes and guiding principles: “For of those to whom much is given, much is required.” To the Mancini family, the truth of this philosophy is strikingly apparent and seemingly written into their family’s history. Deb’s grandfather Antonio Mancini came from humble beginnings.
A first-generation immigrant, he had to give up his formal education in the eighth grade to find work to help support his family during the Great Depression. But he kept learning. Through remarkable grit and determination, Antonio paved the way to a better life. He began by apprenticing as an electrician, then bought and sold a chain of hardware stores, and finally bought a beer distribution company. Through Antonio’s perseverance, he was able to provide his son Ray the opportunity to pursue the education which he never had. In 1960, Ray became the first of many Mancini BC Eagles. He then grew his father’s company into Rhode Island Distributing Co., eventually diversifying into other businesses, including flooring and real estate.
It’s an emotional thing when you meet these young people, so bright and promising, and they tell you that they don’t know how they would have been able to go to college if it hadn’t been for a scholarship from BC…It makes you want to do all that you can.
RAYMOND MANCINI SR.
Now Ray and Ann, along with their children, Deb, Kenneth “Ken” J. Mancini ’83, P’10, ’13, ’15; Raymond “Ray” T. Mancini, Jr. ’84, P’19; and Ronald (Ron) Mancini, are expanding their family’s legacy of philanthropy at BC, with the goal of giving back to the people who supported their grandfather’s growing businesses and helped their family succeed. This investment in BC—the family’s largest philanthropic commitment to date, to any institution—reflects the Mancinis’ love for both Boston College and Rhode Island, recognizing the significant financial need of many students from their home state. The Mancinis’ Ocean State roots run deep, says Deb. “We grew up here, we live here, and our goal is to give back to the communities that have given us so much.”
As the Mancini family knows, one of the best ways to do so is to provide access to education. “My family believes that we effect change by planting a seed of education, sowing knowledge and empathy by growing with the communities we are a part of, and giving back to make the world a better place,” says Deb, who is also a member of BC’s Board of Regents. “I can’t help but imagine what my grandfather might have been able to accomplish had he been afforded an education like I had,” she continues. “What he made, and the legacy he built—not just here at BC, but in my family—is nothing short of extraordinary. What might he have become if only he’d been given that opportunity.”
STUDENT SPOTLIGHT
FINANCIAL AID
LUIS R. RIVERA
Class of 2023
mancini family pops scholar
-
Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences
-
Major: Biology
-
Special Program: Pre-Health Program
-
La Salle Academy Providence, Rhode Island
I am part of the Multicultural Learning Experience and the Dominican Association. These groups have helped me learn many new things. I’ve met new people, learned new things, and am helping to plan events for the community. My intended major is biology, and I am currently on the pre-health track. My plan is to go to medical school. I am utilizing my first semester to find my passion. I am going on the Learning To Learn Dominican Republic Service and Immersion trip during spring break.”
Related tags: