Former state senator donates $3M to Butler County Community College

BUTLER, Pa. — Butler County Community College was given the largest gift to date in its 58-year history.

Tim Shaffer, a former state senator from Prospect who died in 2022, gave $3 million — which the college says is half of his estate — to the BC3 Education Foundation. He also contributed $1 million to the foundation in 2018.

BC3 accepted the gift during a memorial celebration of Shaffer.

“He loved our mission,” said Dr. Nick Neupauer, BC3 president. “He absolutely loved our students. And he believed in the vision and the strategic plan that related to the college. Tim wanted to give to a winner, and clearly BC3 has demonstrated that it is a winner, whether it’s with our No. 1 rankings, our outstanding programs and faculty, or our community partnerships. The largest gift in our history is symbolic of his belief in BC3.”

The gift will establish a BC3 scholarship in memory of Shaffer’s parents and fund a previously created scholarship in memory of his only sibling.

BC3 is still determining criteria to ensure the scholarship honors Shaffer and benefits as many students as possible.

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