Tuesday, November 21, 2006
PRINCESS ANNE, MD – In a recent show of Hawk Pride, J. Ricardo Queen, Class of 1972, pledged $25,000 for faculty development and support in all academic departments at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore. The endowment is established, in tribute to his parents, as the Edna and J. Queen Endowment Fund.
An English major at the University, Queen remembers his classes with Dr. Mary Fair Burks, an English faculty member. After graduation, he went on to teach 8th grade English, before acquiring a number of government and sales jobs that led him to Xerox, where now, more than 30 years later, he serves as national account manager for some of Xerox’s top clients such as GTE, NAPA and Delta Airlines.
Offering UMES time as well as money, Queen has also agreed to be a member of the Advisory Council for the UMES Campaign of Excellence, a seven-year fundraising effort.
UMES employs some 250 full-time faculty members, 61 percent of whom have terminal degrees in their field. A comprehensive, historically black, land-grant university, UMES, through its five schools, offer 29 undergraduate programs, 11 master’s programs and 6 doctoral programs. Faculty development funds, therefore, support travel and research.
In recognition of the Queen gift, the Edna and J. Queen Faculty Lounge will be established in Hazel Hall.
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Contact: Suzanne Waters Street, interim director, UMES Office of Public Relations, 410-621-2355, sstreet@umes.edu.
