Posted on November 10, 2012

Centofanti Foundation Awards $1 Million for Health and Welfare Center

Youngstown State University has announced a $1 million gift from the James and Coralie Centofanti Charitable Foundation to create the James and Coralie Centofanti Center of Health and Welfare for Vulnerable Populations.

The new center will improve the ability of the university's Bitonte College of Health and Human Services to address health and welfare challenges faced by at-risk populations in the region through the funding of student scholarships, internship stipends, graduate assistantships, faculty research grants, and workforce development initiatives that respond to the needs of local health and human services organizations. The center also will host the Centofanti Symposium, which will feature speakers on topics related to the needs of vulnerable populations.

James Centofanti, who died in 2010, was a successful business owner, philanthropist, and longtime member of the board of directors of Farmers National Bank in Canfield. He and his wife, Coralie, who died in 1999, supported numerous educational and community-based activities in and around the Canfield area.

"Jim always had a soft spot for the underdog and the underprivileged, and it was reflected during his life through his generosity and his hands-on involvement in working to improve the lives of people, especially those with special needs," said Mark Graham, executive vice president of Farmers National Bank and chair of the Centofanti Foundation's distribution committee. "He would be very proud to have his family's name associated with a center that focuses on improving the health and welfare of people throughout the Mahoning Valley."