Historic Gift to the Stern Center

by Stern Center Staff

Stern Center Founder and President, Dr. Blanche Podhajski with Cynthia K. Hoehl

Cynthia K Hoehl, of Ferrisburgh, VT, has given a historic gift of two million dollars to the Cynthia K. Hoehl Institute for Excellence Endowment at the Stern Center. This, the single largest gift ever given to the Stern Center, will ensure the perpetuity of the Cynthia K. Hoehl Institute for Excellence. The Institute implements best practices from neuroscience through its instruction and professional learning programs. Specifically, it reduces instruction fees for students with family incomes below $125,000; and, it grants awards to schools and educators to help underwrite professional learning.

“Cynthia Hoehl’s extraordinary generosity will give future generations access to the Cynthia K. Hoehl Institute for Excellence to extend their knowledge as teachers and learners,” said Dr. Blanche Podhajski, Founder and President of the Stern Center. “It is a gift of hope, power and promise.”

Established in 2008, the Institute makes learning opportunities accessible to more students and educators through earnings generated by its now $3 million endowment. Since its inception, the Institute has awarded just under one half million dollars to students and teachers.  With this new gift, we hope to increase our awards to $750,000 over the next five years.

This gift from Cynthia’s personal estate sustains the legacy of an educator passionately committed to extending teacher knowledge and to assuring that students have access to learning grounded in science.

“This gift is an investment in a program I believe in because the Cynthia K. Hoehl Institute for Excellence changes learners' lives,” said Cynthia K. Hoehl.