Chancellor: UMass Lowell to Guarantee Undergrads Paid Career-Connected Experiences

04/13/2023

Contacts for media: Emily Gowdey-Backus, director of media relations and Nancy Cicco, assistant director of media relations

The university will guarantee students paid career-connected experiences during their college careers, UMass Lowell Chancellor Julie Chen announced April 13 in a speech focused on the scope of the university’s impact locally and around the globe.

Speaking to an inauguration ceremony audience of more than 1,000, including Gov. Maura Healey, Congresswoman Lori Trahan, and UMass President Marty Meehan, Chen emphasized the importance of paid learning opportunities beyond the classroom.

“Starting with this fall’s incoming freshmen class, we will guarantee every undergraduate student the opportunity for at least one paid career-connected experience by the time they graduate,” Chen said. “And for those opportunities that don’t come with a paycheck, our student success fund will provide it. No student will be left out because they can’t afford to work for free.”

The ceremony’s keynote speaker, Gov. Maura Healey, said UMass Lowell’s focus on preparing students for the Commonwealth’s high-tech economy was a model for higher education institutions across the Bay State and beyond to emulate.

“Lowell is where it’s at. UMass Lowell and the city represent, to me, all that’s possible in our great Commonwealth, the way research and innovation and academe have come together and partnered with industry and community is so exciting,” said Healey. “UMass Lowell sits at an incredible juncture, we can do great things but we have to seize this moment. I think about Julie Chen and what she can and has already contributed to this region and what she has yet to achieve.”

During a week of celebrations, UMass Lowell donors and supporters contributed $2.6 million to the Chancellor Julie Chen Student Success Fund, which will help provide students financial resources, including ensuring a paycheck for internships an organization could not otherwise afford.

Many of these donations came from attendees of an April 12 Community Celebration that featured the foods of nearly a dozen Lowell restaurants, symbolic of the chancellor’s focus on strengthening the university’s engagement with the city.

Throughout Chen’s inauguration ceremony, speakers emphasized UMass Lowell’s commitment to increasing partnerships and collaboration with industry, government and nonprofits to provide additional educational and research opportunities for students and faculty.

“It’s truly an honor to be with all of you to celebrate my good friend and chancellor, Julie Chen. It’s an extraordinary moment for our city, our community, and our Commonwealth,” said Trahan. “Chancellor Chen is paving the way for so many young people who are watching in our community. She has been an inspiration for the next generation of leaders, particularly women leaders in STEM, since day one. UMass Lowell’s future is bright and I look forward to continuing our work together to ensure the success of these remarkable students and this treasured institution.”

It was a sentiment echoed by UMass President Marty Meehan.

“Today is a very special day for UMass Lowell and I’m delighted to join all of you to celebrate Chancellor Chen,” said Meehan. “I’ve known Julie for more than 15 years and I’ve seen her excel in everything she does. She is a person who sincerely believes in an inclusive culture of access and opportunity and she is off to a tremendous start. She is the right person at this moment to lead this university and I look forward to the next chapter at UMass Lowell that Julie is only just beginning to write.”

Additional Ceremony Comments on Chancellor Chen

“Today, Chancellor Chen leads this university in a shared vision — of a public university counted among the top research institutions in the United States that is a model for diversity and that supports the still-vibrant community it calls home.”
– Steve Karam, chair of the Board of Trustees, University of Massachusetts

“Chancellor Chen’s inauguration is a signal to our partners across the globe that UMass Lowell is ready for the next step in elevating our institution to new heights.”
– Neyder Fernandez, president, UMass Lowell Student Government Association 

“Under [Chen’s] leadership, we can be confident that UMass Lowell will continue to flourish and grow — transforming the lives of students through higher education, supporting the City of Lowell through partnership and economic development, and contributing to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts by preparing succeeding generations of workers, citizens and leaders.”
– Mary Burns, vice-chair of the Board of Trustees, University of Massachusetts

“Her selection as chancellor is the well-deserved progression of 26 years of distinguished service to this university. We appreciate her leadership and partnership, and we look forward to the work we will continue to do together over the years to come.”
– Kevin Petersen, chair, UMass Lowell Faculty Senate

“Today is a great day in Lowell. Today is a great day for UMass Lowell. Those of us who’ve had the pleasure of working with Chancellor Chen know how much she’s already contributed to this university — and this city. She is a driver of research and innovation. She has created partnerships between UMass Lowell and a host of industry and government collaborators.”
– Sen. Ed Kennedy, First Middlesex District

“We in Lowell have been proud to work closely with the leaders of this great institution. Today we take enormous pride in the investiture of the first Asian-American and LGBTQ+ person to serve as UMass Lowell’s chancellor, Julie Chen.”
– Lowell Mayor Sokhary Chau

“As soon as I mentioned Julie, my meeting turned into a gathering of the Julie Chen fan club. They raved about her. There was an issue with a faculty member being able to continue their critical work with the company. Guess who was at the center of solving it all — the one and only Julie Chen.”
– Kenn Turner, president and CEO, Massachusetts Life Sciences Center