May 6, 2005

Becoming Cummings
Tufts Vet School is renamed for benefactors

GRAFTON- Tufts University officially changed the name of its veterinary school yesterday to honor two of its benefactors, William S. and Joyce M. Cummings, and their foundation, the Cummings Foundation Inc.

A celebration was held to mark changing the name of the Route 30 campus from Tufts University School of Veterinary Medicine to the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University. Mr. Cummings, a Tufts alumnus who graduated in 1958, is an entrepreneur and philanthropist.

Founded 27 years ago, the only graduated-level veterinary school in New England has -- until now - been known only as the Tufts University School of Veterinary Medicine. In September, the Woburn-based Cummings Foundation committed $50 million to the school, prompting the name change. The donation will support many of the university's educational, research and clinical efforts, provide matching funds to support major research proposals and finance capital improvements, said Lawrence S. Bacow, president of Tufts University.

"Today is really a historic day, both for the university and for veterinary education," Mr. Bacow said.
"Together, we celebrate a school that has truly become a jewel in the crown of Tufts University and the commonwealth of Massachusetts. We celebrate philanthropy and what it can accomplish, and we recognize an alumnus who has given back --- in an extraordinary way --- because he never will forget how much Tufts University gave to him."

Founded in 1986, the Cummings Foundation is one of the largest charitable organizations in the state.

Mr. Cummings said he was inspired to make the gift by his impressions of the way the university is growing and of the Tufts leadership. Mr. Cummings added he hopes the Cummings Foundation gift serves as a model of support, and he encourages other entities to similarly support universities.

"It is immensely gratifying to be part of an institution like Tufts." Mr. Cummings said.

Mr. Cummings told the crowd that an entrepreneurial leader must have the ability to take an innovative vision and cultivate it through actualization.

Such was the way the veterinary school was founded: as a vision by a Tufts University president who believed that "institutions survive by seizing opportunities."

More than 30 years ago, former Tufts President Jean Mayer revealed in his inaugural address --- to the surprise of many --- that he had made the creation of a veterinary school one of his priorities, Mr. Cummings said.

"(Mr.) Mayer was concerned that great things were afloat in the biomedical field and intuited that they would have an effect on veterinary science," he said. "That vision became a reality and then some."

The foundation's commitment is among the largest ever made to a veterinary school in the United States or to a college or university in the state, Mr. Bacow said. In addition, this is the first veterinary school to take the name of one of its benefactors, said Dr. Philip C. Kosch, dean of the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine.

"The Cummingses' gift represents a vote of confidence in Tufts' visionary leaders who have created a world-class veterinary institution that advances animal, human and public health," Dr. Kosch said. "We cannot thank the Cummings Foundation enough for its trust in us. We now have the distinction of being the first veterinary school in the nation to assume the name of a generous donor."

Mr. Cummings, who is president of the Cummings Foundation, is more than just a financial donor. He has donated a considerable amount of time to the school as an overseer of the Tufts Medical School and a trustee of the university, and through the endowment for the Cummings Family Chair in Entrepreneurship and Business Economics.

Mr. Cummings has an extensive career that reaches from politics to real estate development, and from assisted living to newspaper publishing. The founder of Cummings Properties LLC, one of the largest real estate and development firms in Massachusetts, he also founded and serves as president of the assisted living facilities New Horizons at Choate in Woburn and New Horizons at Marlboro.

The founding publisher of three community newspapers, he was also an elected member and chairman of the Winchester Planning Board, and the director of several institutions, including the Winchester Country Club, Winchester Hospital and a Woburn bank, as well as the director of the Woburn Boys and Girls Club for 25 years.

He has been honored with the Real Estate Entrepreneur of the Year for New England from Ernst & Young in 1998, and was a recipient of the Tufts University Distinguished Service Award.