John ’85 and Carrie Morgridge founded the Morgridge Family Foundation in 2008 to invest in organizations that reimagine solutions to some of today’s most significant challenges. By offering investment, vision, and community to a network of partners achieving profound impact, the Morgridges have and continue to transform lives and communities.
John came to Plymouth State to live and play in the mountains, and his degree in business gave him the broad base to explore opportunities in his career. While a student at PSU, John worked at a lumber company on Tenney Mountain Highway. Loon Mountain and Waterville Valley were being developed during the 80s, giving John in-depth exposure to the business of construction, a perfect complement to classroom theory. John credits his Plymouth years for providing him with the tools both practical and theoretical to manage his own business. “Plymouth State opened opportunities for me. It’s my alma mater and something I want to support,” said John.
Carrie and John have been transformational donors to Plymouth State since their first gifts in 2001. They have generously funded endowments to provide scholarships and internship stipends to deserving Plymouth State students and established the Student Support Foundation (SSF) on campus in 2004. SSF is a student-run organization that empowers students to invest directly into their school’s community. The Plymouth State SSF chapter reviews and approves financial grants to aid students and staff and further supports the community through a primary food pantry, satellite pantries throughout campus and other initiatives during the year.
In 2021, Carrie and John decided to support the Morgridge Strength & Performance Lab, the final piece completing PSU’s Health & Human Enrichment Cluster, because the Morgridges are passionate about the power of education and the direct impact that physical health has on mental health. This 16,000-square foot, state-of-the-art lab located inside PSU’s Human Performance Center opens September 1 and will provide the resources to create positive, transformational change to the Plymouth State learning experience and “to educate the educators of tomorrow.”
