UMass Dartmouth 2024 graduates were stunned at their graduation ceremony when the Chancellor’s Medal for Philanthropy recipient, Robert Hale, surprised each of the 1,200 students with $1,000 as they collected their diplomas. Robert Hale is a billionaire co-founder and president of Massachusetts-based Granite Telecommunications, and a part-owner of the Boston Celtics.
During his speech, Hale praised graduates for their dedication to education during the challenging times of the pandemic. He advised students to follow their dreams and remain resilient in the face of hardships. At the end of his inspirational speech, he announced that he and his wife would be giving each graduate $1,000, but with an important caveat. Graduates must donate half of the money to a charitable organization or a cause they care deeply about.
Hale had students from local elementary schools decorate envelopes and label them ‘give’ and ‘gift’. Each graduate was to receive two envelopes with $500 in each. This overwhelming generosity was met with a standing ovation, full of emotion and gratitude. Hale explained on graduation day that ‘the greatest joys in life that [we] he and his wife have experienced have come from giving’. He later said that it was exhilarating to be a part of such a happy surprise and see the ‘unadulterated joy’ on graduates’ faces.
The 2024 graduating class consists of 41% first-generation college graduates and 31% people of color. Since graduation day, students have contacted Hale detailing their donations to local women’s shelters, fundraisers for relatives’ cancer treatment, and one single mother decided to give $100 to each of her five kids. This beautiful story is a reminder that giving back to others is an empowering and meaningful act. There’s something very special about helping out another person or group of people that you truly care about.
Hale and his wife have given similar gifts to graduates at Quincy College, Roxbury Community College, and UMass Boston. Robert Hale has a net worth of 5.4 billion placing him #203 on the list of 400 richest Americans. Since his climb to fortune, he has put over 270 million toward charitable causes such as cancer research and educational institutions. Read more about this inspiring story here!