Editing Milton Hershey School (section)

== Governance ==
===Finance===
Milton Hershey School's endowment was worth around $15 billion in 2020, about half of which comes from the school's controlling share of [[The Hershey Company]]'s stock;<ref>{{cite news |last1=Fernandez |first1=Bob |title=Hershey School proposes $350 million network of six early childhood centers in Pa. |url=https://www.spotlightpa.org/news/2020/09/pa-hershey-school-expansion-josh-shapiro |access-date=29 January 2021 |work=Spotlight PA |date=30 September 2020 |language=en-us}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Golden |first1=Daniel |title=What Were Milton Hershey's Wishes? Question Hinders His Wealthy School |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB934411771751255177 |access-date=29 January 2021 |work=Wall Street Journal |date=12 August 1999}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Fernandez |first1=Bob |title=Hershey moves short of Pa. goals |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/361522542 |access-date=29 January 2021 |work=The Philadelphia Inquirer |date=27 December 2017 |pages=9, 10 |language=en}}</ref> the school is the US's wealthiest private school (besides universities and colleges).<ref>{{cite web |last1=Fernandez |first1=Bob |title=Startlingly rich Milton Hershey School should expand mission with $12B |url=https://www.inquirer.com/philly/business/Readers-Shockingly-rich-Milton-Hershey-School-should-expand-mission-with-12B.html |website=www.inquirer.com |publisher=Philadelphia Inquirer |access-date=22 March 2021}}</ref> Only about 1.5% of this sum is used per year for educational programs, spending about $118,400 per year on each student.<ref name="2016-inquirer">{{cite news |last1=Fernandez |first1=Bob |title=No candy-coating lack of charity at Hershey School |url=https://www.inquirer.com/news/inq/milton-hershey-schools-lack-charity-isnt-candy-coated-20161117.html |access-date=28 January 2021 |work=The Philadelphia Inquirer |date=6 November 2016}}</ref> The proportionally low spending has been controversial. [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]] professor John Core called it "ludicrous", and [[Georgetown University]] law professor Brian Galle called it "indefensibly low". Galle said the low spending was because the school "can't seem to conceivably find any way to spend this pile of money". School officials countered that the school must adhere to the spending limits of Hershey's original deed.<ref name="2016-inquirer" />

In July 2002, the company managing the school trust announced it was considering selling its share in the Hershey company. Alumni and residents criticized the idea; some accused the trust of long-term financial wrongdoing and incompetence, with 1980 graduate Ric Fouad calling it "the charitable-trust [[Enron]]".<ref>{{cite news |last1=Zehr |first1=Mary Ann |title=Hershey School Part of Fight Over Candy Giant |url=https://www.edweek.org/policy-politics/hershey-school-part-of-fight-over-candy-giant/2002/09 |access-date=28 January 2021 |work=Education Week |date=September 18, 2002}}</ref>

In 2020, Milton Hershey School invested $350 million to fund the development of up to six cost-free early childhood resource centers in Pennsylvania. Named Catherine Hershey Schools for Early Learning, the first center opened in 2023, and they serve children from birth to age five from economically disadvantaged and at-risk backgrounds.<ref>{{Cite web|date=4 May 2022|last=Davis|first=Joyce M.|title=Catherine and Milton Hershey can't come too soon to Harrisburg|url=https://www.pennlive.com/opinion/2022/05/catherine-and-milton-hershey-cant-come-too-soon-to-harrisburg-social-views.html}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Gregg |first=Cherri |date=3 January 2022 |title=A look at Catherine Hershey Schools' $350 million initiative to boost early childhood education |url=https://whyy.org/articles/a-look-at-catherine-hershey-schools-350-million-initiative-to-boost-early-childhood-education/}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.chslearn.org/resources/news-and-media/catherine_hershey_schools_celebrates_grand_opening_early_childhood_education_center/|title=Catherine Hershey Schools for Early Learning celebrates grand opening of first early childhood education center|publisher=Catherine Hershey Schools|date=September 20, 2023|access-date=August 21, 2024}}</ref>

=== Partnerships ===
In 2017, Milton Hershey School created a partnership with [[Pennsylvania State University|Penn State University]], its seventh such partnership to offer graduates of Milton Hershey School support at the college level as first-generation college students.<ref name="pennlive.com">{{Cite web|date=2018-02-06|title=Milton Hershey School partners with Penn State|url=https://www.pennlive.com/community-news/2018/02/milton_hershey_school_1.html|access-date=2021-04-16|website=pennlive|language=en}}</ref> Other similar partnerships are with [[Mansfield University of Pennsylvania|Mansfield University]], [[Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania|Shippensburg University]], [[East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania|East Stroudsburg University]], [[Indiana University of Pennsylvania]] and [[Millersville University of Pennsylvania|Millersville University]].<ref name="pennlive.com"/> In 2018, they signed a similar agreement with [[Dickinson College]].<ref>{{Cite web|date=2018-02-01|title=Milton Hershey School partners with Dickinson College|url=https://www.pennlive.com/community-news/2018/01/milton_hershey_school.html|access-date=2021-04-16|website=pennlive|language=en}}</ref>