The Woman’s Exchange Donates $350,000 For Scholarships

The Woman’s Exchange Donates $350,000 For Scholarships To Brookdale Community College 

The Board of Directors of the Woman’s Exchange of Monmouth County presented a check of $350,000 to Dr. David Stout, president of Brookdale Community College. These funds will provide scholarships to women, age 25 or older, living in Monmouth County, enrolling in continuing education courses. “The mission of the Woman’s Exchange to ‘help women help themselves’ will now continue into the future,” said Monica Boscarino, president of the Woman’s Exchange Board of Directors. In 2020, the woman’s organization closed its retail shop and sold the building. The proceeds from the sale made this donation possible.  

“On behalf of the Board of Trustees and all our students whose lives will be touched by this incredibly generous donation, I thank the Woman’s Exchange for choosing to support Brookdale. This gift will ensure that the impact of the Woman’s Exchange will live on for many years through the work of our Continuing & Professional Studies career training programs. We pledge to educate the scholarship recipients about the Woman’s Exchange Movement and to honor our mutual mission to support economic stability and independence,” said Stout. 

The Woman’s Exchange of Monmouth County, a nonprofit 501(c3), was first located in Rumson before moving to Little Silver, was established in 1934 during the depression era, and provided artisans and crafters the opportunity to support themselves. For over 75 years, the Woman’s Exchange has provided hundreds of thousands of dollars in donations to charities throughout Monmouth County and has paid out over $2.5 million to the artisans selling their handmade gifts. 

“We are honored that the members of the Woman’s Exchange of Monmouth County chose Brookdale Community College as the recipient of this most generous gift. The scholarships created from this donation will provide financial support that will lift the burden that so many of our students are pursuing their education face,” said Nancy Kaari, vice president of advancement at Brookdale Community College. 

Brookdale’s Office of Continuing and Professional Studies has programs in healthcare, information technology, business, teacher education, human resources, non-profit management, entrepreneur, and more. Their programs are developed with the adult student in mind. They offer the pricing, scheduling, and effective course completion paths that busy adult students demand. Classes are delivered online, instructor-led remote–live, and in person. Job placement assistance is available for many of the career programs. 

Photo front row left to right: Joan Scocco, Dean of Continuing and Professional Studies; Woman’s Exchange members, Kathy Dubois, Patricia Donohoe, Maryanne Mognoni
back row left to right: Karla Printz, from the Woman’s Exchange, David Stout, president of Brookdale Community College, Monica Boscarino, president of the Woman’s Exchange, Nancy Kaari, vice president of advancement and Stephanie Fitzsimmons, director of financial aid. Missing from the photo are Woman’s Exchange members, Jane Gehlhaus, Ibby Hertz, Ann Leuin, Susan Minehardt