West Chester College Nameless Donation to Develop into 52-ac East Whiteland Township Nature Protect and Pubic Park – Model Slux

Reposted with permission from West Chester College Newsroom initially posted 18 June 2025

WCU Receives Largest Donation to Date of $4.7 Million Via Distinctive Land Donation Partnership with East Whiteland Township 

Nameless donor’s 52-acre reward permits revolutionary university-township collaboration for training, conservation & public use

West Chester College has acquired the most important single reward in its historical past by an revolutionary partnership that transforms a beneficiant land reward into each a dwelling laboratory for WCU college students and usable public area for Chester County residents. An nameless donor gifted a 52-acre farm property, fondly referred to as Ridley Springs, that has resulted in $4.7 million for the College by a singular, dual-purpose settlement with East Whiteland Township that ensures protected open area for the Chester County group. On June 17, a signing ceremony at Ridley Springs farm celebrated the ultimate property switch. The ceremony introduced collectively College leaders, township representatives, college students, and group members who made this historic partnership doable.

WCU college students majoring in or with pursuits in geographic info programs, well being, sustainability, artwork and design, areas of the sciences, and different fields of research will play energetic roles in working with East Whiteland Township to develop the preserved farm property for the group’s use and pleasure. The intent of the collaborative initiative is to protect one of many area’s most breathtaking greenways.

“We’re extraordinarily grateful for this donation and for all the chances that it holds for our college students’ experiential studying,” stated West Chester College President Laurie Bernotsky. “Our dedication to maintain this land is a part of the material of who we’re pretty much as good stewards of our group. As a public establishment, now we have an obligation to contribute to the general public good. Because of the generosity of our nameless donor and to Dr. John Baker, who performed an incredible position in making the reward occur, this can be a stunning instance of how the College can contribute to environmental sustainability whereas integrating college students in the whole lot that we do.”

Preserving the property is a mutual dedication. “East Whiteland Township’s imaginative and prescient for the property facilities on long-term conservation and group enrichment,” stated East Whiteland Township Supervisor Steve Brown. “Plans are underway to remodel the land right into a nature protect and public park, preserving its pure magnificence and stopping future industrial, residential, or industrial improvement – honoring the unique intent of the donor.”

The land transaction required in depth assist from the better Chester County and Pennsylvania communities, in addition to a sequence of revolutionary funding options. To buy the farmland from the College, East Whiteland Township secured grant funding from each Chester County and the Pennsylvania Division of Conservation and Pure Sources. Moreover, township supervisors handed an open area referendum, enabling the usage of taxpayer funds for future conservation acquisitions.

“This challenge exemplifies the great assist from our better Chester County and Pennsylvania communities,” stated Chairman of the East Whiteland Township Board of Supervisors Scott Lambert. “The collaboration between our nameless donor, West Chester College, county authorities, state businesses, and native taxpayers exhibits what’s doable once we work collectively for conservation and training.”

Positioned in the center of the Chester Valley in east-central Chester County, East Whiteland Township is finest recognized for the picturesque hill vary discovered alongside its northern and southern boundaries, in addition to its expansive valley ground. The distinctive valley consists of an intricate sample of streams, which embody Valley Creek and Little Valley Creek, and majestic woodlands.