Salem Academy and College has received a gift of $1 million from an anonymous donor who wishes to name the biology and environmental studies wing in the new sciences/mathematics building in honor of esteemed college alumna and trustee Lucy Rose, class of 1976.

“We thank the donor for this wonderful gift, and we thank Lucy Rose whose dedication to women in the sciences inspired this extraordinary act of generosity,” said Dr. D. E. Lorraine Sterritt, President of Salem Academy and College, who announced the gift at a kickoff gala for Salem’s Women of Purpose campaign on March 16, 2015.

Rose earned a degree in biology at Salem College before completing her MBA at Averett College and attending the Wake Forest University Physician Assistant Program in order to become a board-certified physician assistant.

Rose worked as a sales representative for Mead Johnson Pharmaceuticals, a division of Bristol-Meyers Squibb, before joining the Food and Drug Administration, where she worked in the agency’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. Her exemplary work at the FDA earned her numerous awards, including the administration’s highest leadership accolade, the Award of Merit, and induction into the Direct to Consumer Hall of Fame. 

For nearly 20 years, Rose has been president of her own company, Lucy Rose & Associates, a global consulting firm that provides regulatory promotional strategy support to pharmaceutical and medical device companies throughout the development and commercialization of their products. 

A member of the Board of Trustees at Salem Academy and College, Rose has also served as a reunion giving chair and as the 2013 College Commencement speaker.

Salem Academy and College’s Women of Purpose campaign has already secured more than $30 million. The new sciences and mathematics building is part of the $40 million campaign priority for infrastructure and technology, which is a subset of the overall $60 million campaign.