Salesianum gets record $10 million donation

• Gift will fund scholarships for students in need
• Amount is one of largest given to a secondary school in U.S.
• Salesianum is all-boys Catholic school in Wilmington
• Fusco has donated millions to other schools, arts and charitable groups in New Castle County

It's not every day that a private school can announce a $10 million donation to its endowment.

Sunday, Salesianum School was able to do just that, using an ad in The News Journal to trumpet the generosity of local real estate developer and philanthropist Anthony N. Fusco Sr. The money, according to the ad, "ensures that the doors of Salesianum remain open to all who wish to learn."

It is the largest donation ever made to the all-boys Catholic school, founded in 1903, and the largest ever to a secondary school in Delaware, according to Brendan Kennealey, the school's president for the past three years and a member of the Board of Trustees. The school's research shows that "only a handful" of donations this size have been given to a secondary school anywhere in the country, Kennealey said.

Annual tuition at the school is $13,200; about 30 percent of its 974 students receive financial assistance, Kennealey said.

It's not the first donation from Fusco – who did not graduate from Sallies, but has several grandchildren and a son-in-law who are alumni, according to Kennealey. In 2011, Fusco gave $2.4 million toward a $7 million capital campaign to build a new strength and conditioning center. Salesianum's athletes moved into the Anthony N. Fusco Sr. Athletic Center, which is named after him, in October 2012.

Fusco or his foundation give to the school every year, Kennealey said. All told, Fusco has donated more than $12.5 million to Salesianum, he said.

"He's been a huge and generous supporter of Salesianum," said Kennealey, a 1994 graduate. "A great friend of the school."

Kennealey said he approached Fusco about a major gift to the school's endowment – which now stands at about $14.5 million – nearly two years ago, and "more seriously" about a year ago.

"Obviously, with a gift of this size, things take time," Kennealey said.

Kennealey said the endowment, the interest on which funds financial aid, is central to the success of the school's just-approved institutional plan.

"Every year, we have well over $2 million worth of need," he said. "Prospective students need more financial aid than we can give out."

The board, he said, set a goal to "drastically" increase the school's ability to do so, and to grow the endowment "significantly."

"A $10 million gift – a gift of that size – will go a long, long way to getting us to where we need to be," Kennealey said.

The board's vice chairman agreed.

"The impact of this is huge," said Earl MacFarlane. "Clearly, we have a vision to provide an education for kids of all backgrounds."

MacFarlane, who is black, has two sons who've attended Salesianum, with one a current junior. He praised the school's leadership on the diversity front, calling it one of the earliest schools in the Wilmington community to integrate racially.

"I think for diverse families, and for working families of all backgrounds, it's the aim of the school to make the school accessible to deserving students," MacFarlane said. "And this really helps advance that cause tremendously."

Fusco could not be reached for comment on Sunday.

Fusco also has given money to Padua Academy and Ursuline Academy, two Catholic all-girls schools in Wilmington, in the past, and donated materials and labor to help build Padua.

Fusco's generosity has also benefited a wide variety of other causes in New Castle County – among them the Ronald McDonald House of Delaware, the Boys & Girls Clubs of Delaware, and Habitat for Humanity.

Fusco also has given millions to the Delaware Art Museum, where the reservoir – recast as a labyrinth – is named for him, and the museum's special exhibition space is named for Fusco and his late wife, Catherine A. Fusco. Her name also graces the museum's grand entrance hall.

The new $10 million commitment to Salesianum consists of two parts, according to Kennealey: a $5 million promissory note that will provide the money in installments over the next nine years, and $5 million Fusco's estate will provide upon his death.

Reporter Brad Myers contributed to this story.

Contact William H. McMichael at (302) 324-2812 or bmcmichael@delawareonline.com. On Twitter: @billmcmichael