The ECU Health Foundation has launched a comprehensive campaign to raise $30 million for the East Carolina University Brody School of Medicine. Funds raised during the public phase of the Learning. Living. Leading. campaign focus on two primary areas for the school, the Educational Excellence Endowment and the Brody Center for Medical Education Fund.
Dr. Michael Waldrum, dean of the medical school and CEO of ECU Health, said the campaign will strengthen the medical school’s ability to improve the health and well-being of the region.
“The Brody School of Medicine has always prepared physicians who serve where they are needed most, and our alumni now lead in healthcare across the state and the nation,” Waldrum said. “Advancing the health of eastern North Carolina remains our mission and a strategic priority for East Carolina University. This campaign gives us the means to educate our students in a transformative new space and to extend Brody’s impact well beyond our region.”
The campaign’s two complementary philanthropic priorities also share in advancing the university’s mission of student success. Funds are expected to enhance the student experience for the next generation of physicians and healthcare workers trained at Brody. Donor investment will target areas that strengthen learning experiences, technology and experiential opportunities that prepare Brody students for the realities of modern medicine.
Dr. Scott Senatore, chief philanthropy officer of the ECU Health Foundation, said the Learning. Living. Leading. campaign will transform how the medical school provides medical education in the Brody Center for Medical Education (BCME) and furthers the alignment between the health system and the university.
“Healthcare needs in our region are growing, and we are meeting those needs through growth in medical and health sciences programs at ECU,” Senatore said. “Investments in this campaign will help ECU prepare more healthcare providers not only to practice medicine, but to lead the future of healthcare in North Carolina and beyond.”
Construction of the BCME, a $265 million state-funded project, is the largest capital construction effort at ECU in more than a decade. The seven-story building is scheduled to open for the 2027–28 academic year, providing a new environment for medical education.
“The state-of-the-art medical education offered at Brody will be enhanced by this new space, and the campaign will transform the building into a home for the next generation of skilled, exceptional medical professionals,” Senatore said. “Our $30 million campaign reaches beyond the building itself by providing the people, programs and experiences that will make the space meaningful.”
The Educational Excellence Endowment represents long-term investment in a wide range of Brody priorities, including learning communities in the BCME, student and professional development, emerging technologies, and research and travel opportunities.
A philanthropic pledge from the Brody family provided early support for the campaign. Cousins David and Laura Brody, and Hyman and Stacy Brody, of the Brody family, announced $10 million of support to the Brody Scholars program earlier this year. The building was officially named the Brody Center for Medical Education by the university’s board of trustees to honor the family’s decades of philanthropy.
Click here for more information and opportunities to support the campaign or contact Grace Tolson, Director of Development, at [email protected] or 252-847-5761.