Allan Hancock College received the largest bequest in the community college’s history thanks to the donation of the late Patricia Boyd, who stipulated in her will that a portion of her estate go to the college. Between $10 and $12 million was donated to the college to benefit its music department. Another $1 million went to the Pacific Conservatory of the Performing Arts.
Boyd, who passed away in July 2012, taught piano professionally in the Santa Maria Valley, both privately and at Allan Hancock College, where she was fine arts faculty for many years. She continued to teach privately well in to her 80s and continued to support and frequent PCPA productions.
The bequest is specific in nature, according to the Allan Hancock College Foundation, which received the donation. The money is to enhance the physical assets of the college’s music department, including a concert hall, sound systems, instruments, and sheet music. The music department at Allan Hancock College currently includes performance, featuring a concert band, jazz band, chorale, and electronic bands, and courses in music history, theory, electronic music, piano, guitar, and sound recording.
More information on the Patricia J. Boyd Fund and Allan Hancock College is available at 925-2004 or hancockcollege.edu.
This article appears in Apr 11-18, 2013.
