Alumna's estate pledges $400,000 to Rider

The estate of Doris Hoagland '42 has donated a planned gift of $405,980 to Rider. The unrestricted funds will be used immediately to support on-going University initiatives.

A graduate of Flemington High School, Hoagland grew up on a farm near the border of Sergentsville, N.J., and Ringoes, N.J. Her Rider experience began unconventionally with a knock on her front door, according to her family. A college representative spoke to her parents about the possibility of Hoagland attending Rider on a scholarship and she quickly enrolled. She earned a diploma in secretarial science and immediately began working as a secretary at Pierce Roberts Rubber Co. in Trenton, N.J.

Equipped with a degree and a hard-working attitude, Hoagland was perpetually thankful for the ability to carve her own path in life and wanted to show her appreciation for her alma mater.

"Rider gave her her life, otherwise she may have never left the farm," says Laurie Vocke, her second cousin by marriage. "She was very grateful to those who cared for her and gave her a step up in life. Rider gave her the ability to further her education. It also helped her locate a job she worked at for her whole career, which allowed her to form the life she wanted."

During her more than 50-year career, Hoagland worked for three generations of the family-owned rubber manufacturing business and eventually became office manager. Vocke says Hoagland's career was critical to her life as it afforded her the ability to become financially independent during an age when many women were not in the workforce.

Planned gifts are one way individuals can make a difference for current and future generations of students. Gifts can be used to support a variety of areas including student scholarships, campus improvements and more. Each year, Rider awards more than $86 million in scholarships and financial aid, with 99 percent of students receiving aid. Campus improvements such as upgrades to residence halls and academic buildings, a new facade for the Bart Ludeke Center and a $20 million addition to the Science and Technology Center have been underway since 2017 and are planned through 2020. Without donor support, many would not be possible.

"We are thankful for Doris' generous planned gift and for cherishing the impact Rider had on her life, " says Karin Klim, vice president for University Advancement. "Her legacy will allow future Rider students to have similar career-advancing opportunities and scholarship support."