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The Law School will establish the Francis X. Bellotti Loan Repayment and Forgiveness Program in honor of Arbella Insurance Group founder, current Arbella board Vice Chairman and former Massachusetts Attorney General Frank Bellotti, who graduated from BC Law in 1952. The program is made possible through $3 million in gifts to BC Law — $2 million from the Arbella Insurance Group Charitable Foundation and $1 million from individuals associated with Arbella and Bellotti.
The Bellotti Loan Repayment and Forgiveness Program, which will expand the law school's current loan repayment program, will encourage BC Law graduates to embrace careers in public interest law by providing funds to help pay down the student loan debt of those actively engaged in public service, as well as loan forgiveness for new graduates who are committed to careers in public interest law.
Loan repayment and forgiveness programs have become vital tools in encouraging law graduates to pursue careers in the less lucrative field of public interest law, given the growing disparity between the median salaries of attorneys in the public and private sectors. To be eligible to begin receiving loan forgiveness, BC Law alumni must have graduated within the past five years and earn $57,000 or less, while working in direct legal services to the poor, nonprofit law, or in city, state and federal government agencies.
The Arbella Insurance Group Charitable Foundation gift, believed to be one of the largest bestowed to a law school for this purpose, is the second largest gift in BC Law's history. It will take effect immediately, and provide an additional $150,000 per year in loan repayment and forgiveness to be awarded to qualified candidates above and beyond the $330,000 BC Law expended last year. It will also provide an endowment to fund the program in perpetuity.
"This commitment from the Arbella Insurance Group, and colleagues and friends of Frank Bellotti, will provide crucial funding that will vastly expand BC’s existing loan repayment program, while enabling BC Law graduates to pursue public interest careers," said George Brown, interim dean of BC Law. "We are grateful to Arbella for their generous support, and pleased that the program will bear the name of a distinguished alumnus whose name is synonymous with public service."
Arbella Insurance Group Charitable Foundation Chairman and President John F. Donohue, who cites Bellotti as his professional mentor, describes the Francis X. Bellotti Loan Repayment and Forgiveness Program as "a natural fit," given Arbella's heritage of giving back to the communities it serves, Frank Bellotti's lifelong commitment to public service and the mission of BC Law School.
"Frank Bellotti has been a mentor and role model for multiple generations of lawyers who want to dedicate their careers to government or public interest jobs," said Donohue. "Creating this endowment in Frank's name at Boston College Law School rightly recognizes all he has done over the years to support those committed to public service."
In addition to donations from the Arbella Insurance Group Charitable Foundation, in support of this gift, Arbella will host a benefit dinner on Feb. 17 to honor Bellotti for his distinguished career. Proceeds from the dinner will be applied to the program.
"It is a great honor to have my name associated with this loan repayment assistance program and my law school," said Bellotti. "I have always believed that public service is the best service. It not only benefits the recipients, it benefits all of us because it is helping create an entire group of young people committed to making people's lives better, people who need someone on their side. It is a commitment that will stay with them forever."
BC Law's Loan Repayment Assistance Program has grown considerably over the years as demand has increased. In 2010, $330,000 was awarded, five times the total dollars granted a decade ago. The number of recipients has more than tripled during that time from 20 in 1999 to 79 in 2010.
Established in 1988, the Quincy-based Arbella Insurance Group www.arbella.com boasts more than $600 million in revenue and approximately $1 billion in assets. Arbella is a customer-focused regional property and casualty insurance company, providing personal and business insurance in Massachusetts and Connecticut, and business insurance in Rhode Island and New Hampshire. Arbella Insurance Group founded the Arbella Insurance Group Charitable Foundation in 2004 to engage in activities and to support not-for-profit organizations that have a significant positive impact on the people and communities served by Arbella.