Salem College reports record growth and $5M gift

Salem College is celebrating record-breaking enrollment and a major financial gift. 

Last week, Salem College officials announced a second year of record growth, with the number of new students on campus increasing by more than 50 percent. The Winston-Salem-based women’s college also received an all-time high number of applications for a second consecutive year.

Then on Tuesday, the school announced a $5 million gift to support its transformation to being a liberal arts college focusing on health leadership. The anonymous gift, which came from a Salem College alumna, equals the largest in the school’s history.

Salem College President Summer McGee attributes the growth in part to the recent transition to an emphasis on health leadership roles for women. She says this focus complements the college’s traditional liberal arts curriculum.

"We continue to see that we have not achieved gender equity, pay equity, that women are underrepresented in everything from clinical research to policy," says McGee. "And, of course, now we also have the 'Barbie bump' of the power of women in our economy."

McGee calls the $5 million gift a “transformative” investment.