A Commitment to Education

Drs. Francine and Henry Sikorski

Drs. Henry Sikorski, Ph.D. ’92, and his wife, Francine D. Sikorski, MA, ’78 of Garden City, New York, spent their careers as English professors. They are making an estate gift that will support scholarships for students of limited financial means in the Department of English and the College of Education and Human Sciences at The University of New Mexico. The two scholarship funds are endowed, meaning they will exist in perpetuity.

Drs. Sikorski believe their UNM education allowed them to live rich and productive lives. Having worked as lifelong teachers and as the first generation of their respective families to complete college degrees, they genuinely believe in the power of higher education to change lives and provide an answer to society’s challenges.

Originally from Long Island, the couple came to New Mexico upon the suggestion of a professor at Hofstra University—where Henry completed his master’s thesis on D.H. Lawrence. Studying in New Mexico provided an opportunity to leave metropolitan New York and to experience a different culture and environment. The couple maintains an affection for New Mexico.

Drs. Francine and Henry Sikorski

Henry is an adjunct professor of composition and literature at Nassau Community College. In his career at Farmingdale State College (SUNY), he advanced through the ranks from instructor to tenured professor and served for ten years as vice president of institutional advancement and chief development officer. By the time Henry retired, almost every student was receiving some form of financial aid.

Francine has been an adjunct professor at Nassau Community College for more than 25 years. While pursuing her Ed.D. at Hofstra University, she worked at elementary schools on Long Island and Manhattan. Francine’s undergraduate education was funded with student loans, so the Sikorskis understand the burden of educational loan debt. This encouraged their support of scholarships at their alma maters.

In addition to his teaching career, Henry became involved in several residential development projects on Long Island; as he explains: “I first took the route of academia (my first love) and also embraced the business skills necessary to achieve the financial independence I sought for Francine and myself.”

The Sikorskis feel very fortunate for their success, and it is a privilege to support the universities that allowed them to achieve their life goals; as Henry explains: “My wife and I believe in UNM’s mission to provide every student a quality education and feel that our scholarships will be the best investment in the future we will ever make!”

The Sikorskis chose to make their gift through a charitable bequest designated in a will or trust. One of the easiest and most flexible ways to make an estate gift, a bequest allows the donor to retain control over assets during their lifetime while creating a transformative impact on UNM’s future.