It’s an exciting time to give to Bentley, according to Steven and Christine (Smith) Manfredi, both Class of 1973 graduates and parents to Laura ’10. Pick any weekday to walk across the quad and you’re sure to overhear Marketing majors brainstorming strategy for a major label or bump into blazer- and backpack-clad students off to internships or interviews.

“Students come here for a solid education with the goal of pursuing a career, not just a job,” says Steve. “They’re immersed in programs and taught by terrific faculty who prepare them for the real world.”

Bentley’s diverse curriculum and entrepreneurial focus allow students to explore their true potential and pursue opportunities they might never have dreamed of, says Chris. “That’s huge for personal success. It builds a confidence that carries you.”

The Manfredis have benefited greatly from their own Bentley educations. “It makes it easy to give back,” says Steve, chairman of the Board of Trustees. Adds Chris: “As alumni, it’s our responsibility to help others. We each need to ask: What does the university need and how can I help?”

  

As alumni, it’s our responsibility to help others. We each need to ask: What does the university need and how can I help?

Christine Manfredi ’73, P ’10 

The couple’s most significant — though certainly not the last — contribution was a $2 million gift to launch the Center for Women and Business (CWB). The CWB focuses on helping corporations recruit, retain and advance women in the workplace via action steps and thought leadership. Through conferences, fellowships, corporate partnerships and more, the CWB has earned national recognition as a change agent for gender balance.

If the Manfredis have a family motto, it is “lead by example.” They encourage fellow alumni to do the same — because what is more fulfilling than helping someone who truly needs it? asks Chris, noting that “a student who feels grateful for how she or he has been helped is someone who’ll pay it forward.”

Steve acknowledges that donors give according to their specific passions about the institution. “But at the heart of it all is Bentley itself: what it’s accomplishing, what it has done for your life and what it’s doing for countless others. And that’s why we give."