Cascone Family Donates $1 million to Jacksonville University

Cascone Family Donates $1 million to Jacksonville University

JACKSONVILLE, Fla.—Jacksonville University is proud to announce a $1 million donation from The Cascone Family Foundation, chaired by Michael Cascone Jr., to fund student aid and merit scholarships.

L to R: President Kerry Romesburg, Judy Romesburg, Elizabeth Cascone, Michael Cascone, Jr., Julie Gredenhag and Kathy Kilbane.

"This is an incredible gift," said JU President Kerry Romesburg. "More than 80 percent of JU students rely on loans to pay tuition. This will give many of them the opportunity to get a quality education even in today’s current economic climate. The Cascone family has shown such generosity and love toward JU, and we can’t thank them enough."

Cascone, a 1965 math graduate of JU and chairman emeritus of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Florida, says that JU is a great asset to Jacksonville.

"There are no other universities like JU," said Cascone. "It has small class sizes, a diverse population, outstanding aviation, nursing and NROTC programs and so much more. There are a lot of things going on at JU and a lot of things that need to go on. We’re happy to be able to be as supportive as we can of what JU is all about and what it’s doing."

"History shows that a lot of our problems can be solved through education," said Cascone. "Education is more important than ever right now."

Cascone will give the keynote address at tomorrow’s winter commencement in Swisher Gymnasium and receive an honorary doctorate of humane letters. He will speak to students about a range of topics from becoming a team player to developing strong interpersonal skills. Streaming video of the ceremony will be broadcast live on www.asun.tv for a week after the ceremony.

Cascone began his career at BCBSF in 1968 and served as president and COO, executive vice president and in a senior officer role over each of the BCBSF divisions before being named CEO and president in 1998. During his tenure as CEO, BCBSF increased top line annual revenue to $5.9 billion, increased the number of Floridians served to more than six million, maintained external financial ratings that were among the highest in the country, added new product lines and provider networks and upgraded customer service.

While at BCBSF, Cascone served on the Board of Directors of the national Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. He was also chairman of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association's Federal Employees Program, one of the largest health plans in the world. Cascone also served on several key committees for the national Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, including finance, mediation, health policy, legislative and operations. He served as chairman of The Caucus, an organization of non-profit Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plans.

Cascone served as chairman of JU’s Board of Trustees from 2001 to 2005. In addition, he completed Harvard’s Advanced Management Program in 1985.