The Donald F. Cushing '66. '71 and Kathleen M. (Kane) Cushing '65,'71 Endowed Scholarship

.Donald F. Cushing ’66, M.Ed. ’71, and his late wife, Kathleen M. (Kane) Cushing ’65, M.Ed. ’71, share a special connection to Worcester State, the place where they discovered their love of teaching, coaching, and each other. Lancer Nation remained an important part of their lives through 52 years of marriage before Kathleen passed away in 2018. The Donald F. Cushing ’66, ’71 and Kathleen M. (Kane) Cushing ’65, ’71 Endowed Scholarship supports a full-time undergraduate student majoring in English, who intends on being a high school English teacher.
Don has been in the field of education for 53 years (1966-2019) and is a long-time teacher, school administrator, coach, and athletic director. At Worcester State, he helped found the WSU Athletic Hall of Fame and served as chair and member of the selection committee for 25 years. He also served as an athletic alumni development officer for several years and as an assistant men’s basketball coach for 10 years (2002-2012).
Don worked at Bartlett High School in Webster, Mass., for 35 years, teaching English and social studies for 17 years before transitioning to chair of the guidance department. In addition to serving as Bartlett’s athletic director for two decades, he was the varsity soccer coach and basketball coach, earning Central Mass. Coach of the Year honors for both sports. He was also an assistant principal for 10 years.
He currently is the headmaster of Putnam Science Academy in Putnam, Conn., where he has worked since 2015. He was previously the principal of St. Joseph School in Webster, Mass., and guidance director of St. Mary’s Junior/Senior High School in Worcester.
In the community, he directed the Webster Park Summer Basketball Program for 27 years and the Webster Instructional Basketball Camps for 15 years; co-directed the WPI soccer camp for 18 years and the Central Hoop Clinic at Nichols College for nine years; also, he has co-directed the Tourtellotte Instructional Basketball Camp for the last 15 years.
Cushing is in several Athletic Halls of Fame: the Worcester State Athletic Hall of Fame in 1988; the Massachusetts Basketball Coaches Hall of Fame in 2008; the New England Basketball Hall of Fame, both in 2009 as a coach/athletic director and in 2014 as an icon; and the Bartlett High School Hall of Fame in 2016. He was also named the Paul Johnson Award winner in 2007 for his contributions to the sport of basketball in Central Massachusetts.
Kathleen dedicated herself to teaching, coaching, religious education mentoring, and—with Don—raising three strong daughters: Maura Hackenson ’00, Colleen Towle, and Patricia Espinosa ’03 (Maura and Patricia are also in the Worcester State Hall of Fame). Kathleen taught and coached in the Leicester School System and later at Shepherd Hill Regional High School in Dudley, Mass. Kathleen was very active in athletics as an athlete while in high school, later as a teacher/coach in both the Leicester and Dudley school systems, and in championing the first girl’s soccer program in the town of Dudley.
She received her Religious Education Certification from Assumption College and served as director of religious education at St. Anthony of Padua in Dudley and Our Lady of Loreto in Worcester. Kathleen went on to work in the Chancery Building for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Worcester as the religious education coordinator. In addition, she worked for the Office of the Diaconate assisting with the deacon formation program. Kathleen’s final position was as director of religious education at Christ the King Parish, Worcester, retiring in 2010.
[One $1,000 award annually] The Donald F. Cushing ’66, ’71 and Kathleen M. (Kane) Cushing ’65, ’71 Endowed Scholarship will be awarded to a full-time undergraduate students majoring in English, who intends on being a high school English teacher.