Boston-The New England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE) will honor the Bernard Osher Foundation at its ninth annual New England Higher Education Excellence Awards celebration to be held Friday, March 11, 2011, at the Long Wharf Marriott Hotel in Boston, Mass. More than 500 people will attend this event, including leaders of education, business and government from across the six New England states.

Each year, NEBHE presents Regional Excellence Awards to individuals and organizations that have shown exceptional leadership on behalf of higher education and the advancement of educational opportunity, and State Merit Awards to honor the innovative work of organizations, institutions or individuals in each New England state.

The Bernard Osher Foundation is the recipient of the Maine State Merit Award, which honors an individual, program or organization which has made a significant contribution to higher education in the state of Maine.

Bernard Osher, a patron of education and the arts is a native of Maine. He created the Bernard Osher Foundation in 1977, to improve the quality of life by supporting higher education and the arts.

The foundation provides scholarship funding to colleges and universities across the nation and supports a growing national network of lifelong learning institutes for older adults. The Osher Lifelong Learning Institutes operate on the campuses of 118 colleges and universities from Maine to Hawaii. The Institutes have a National Resource Center at the University of Southern Maine. The Osher Scholars and Fellows Program provides scholarship support for students of academic promise and financial need matriculating at colleges and universities principally in Northern California and Maine. The Osher Reentry Scholarship Program provides scholarship support for students pursuing their first baccalaureate degrees after a significant break in their studies. Currently, 77 universities and colleges in 36 states and the District of Columbia participate in this program.

"Bernard Osher is well-known as 'the quiet philanthropist.' But his foundation has been anything but quiet for these dedicated students," said NEBHE President and CEO Michael K. Thomas.