University of Maryland Children’s Hospital receives $50M from NY philanthropist

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When officials at the University of Maryland Children’s Hospital in Baltimore received a letter inviting them to apply for up to $50 million in charitable funding from Rochester philanthropist Tom Golisano, Bert W. O’Malley Jr. wasn’t sure what to think.

“Is this real or is this a phishing thing?” wondered O’Malley, executive vice president for academic health and president of the University of Maryland Medical Center.

It was very real – and will become transformative.

Golisano is making the largest philanthropic contribution ever to the University of Maryland Medical System and the University of Maryland, Baltimore. The $50 million gift, paid over the next five years, will strengthen the University of Maryland Medical Center and its School of Medicine as leaders in breakthrough science, education and compassionate care.

The donation is part of a $253 million giving campaign that establishes the Golisano Children’s Alliance. The University of Maryland Golisano Children’s Hospital will join nine other pediatric care facilities to create the alliance, allowing for expanded collaboration among doctors and researchers in order to ensure patients receive the best treatment possible.

The four health care facilities currently supported by Golisano — including the first Golisano Children’s Hospital at the University of Rochester Medical Center — will be joined by six other children’s hospitals from New York to Florida under the Alliance umbrella.

But this initial $253 million in funding is only the beginning. Golisano said the goal is to expand the Alliance across the country. His foundation is targeting 40 more hospitals, with the next additions to the network expected in 2026, he said.

“Few things have brought me more pride and fulfillment than investing in children,” Golisano said Tuesday morning in making the announcement at the Golisano Institute for Business in the Rochester suburb of Brighton.

This latest donation pushes Golisano’s lifetime philanthropic giving to more than $1 billion. The Rochester native made his fortune through the founding of payroll services firm Paychex.
“I am fortunate to be able to help others in this way, and I’m looking forward to seeing what these hospitals can achieve together,” said Golisano, who said these charitable efforts were possible because of the decades of hard work of Paychex employees.

Along with Golisano Children’s Hospital in Rochester, the Alliance will include Upstate Golisano Children’s Hospital at SUNY Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, New York; Golisano Children’s Hospital of Lee Health in Fort Myers, Florida; and the Oishei Children’s Hospital in Buffalo, which will adopt the Golisano name in January.

The University of Maryland joins five others in the Alliance adding the Golisano name:

• Connecticut Children’s Medical Center in Hartford (receiving a $50 million gift);
• Penn State Health Children’s Hospital in Hershey, Pennsylvania ($50 million);
• University of Kentucky Children’s Hospital in Lexington ($50 million);
• University of Vermont Children’s Hospital in Burlington ($25 million);
• West Virginia University Children’s Hospital in Morgantown ($28 million).

The partnership will allow the hospitals to share best practices, collaborate on technical advances, work together on research and reduce costs through combined purchases and share.
Together, the hospitals “will advocate for stronger pediatric health care across the nation,” Golisano said. “We’re building something that will last well beyond all of us.”