Could help fund new campus in Cape May, Atlantic counties
CAMDEN — An unprecedented donation to Cooper University Health Care could help fund a major expansion at the shore, including a multi-specialty campus in Cape May and Atlantic counties.
Cooper University Health Care Board of Trustees Executive Chairman, Co-President and Co-Chief Executive Officer Dr. Anthony J. Mazzarelli recently announced a $100 million gift from George E. Norcross III.
The gift was made in honor of the family’s patriarch and matriarch, George E. Norcross Jr. and Anne Carol Conner Norcross, and in recognition of his brothers, John, Donald and Philip; his children, Alessandra (“Lexie”) and Alexander; and Sandra T. Norcross.
The donation is the largest single philanthropic gift in the institution’s history and one of the largest ever made to a health system in New Jersey, according to a news release from the health system.
The gift will be directed toward investments in Cooper’s larger service area in southern New Jersey and Camden, prioritizing education and community programs that create jobs, training and opportunity, according to the release.
The Norcross family’s service and leadership at Cooper span more than 50 years, beginning with George Norcross Jr. That commitment represents more than one-third of Cooper’s 139-year history. In recognition of this longstanding legacy, the health system will add the Norcross name.
“For more than 50 years, our family has been dedicated to Cooper, and we are so proud to make this contribution to ensure that Cooper and the thousands of talented, committed professionals who make a difference every day for the people of Camden and South Jersey can continue the important work of investing in their future and in Camden’s continued renaissance,” said George E. Norcross III, chairman of the Cooper University Health Care Board of Trustees.
The Norcross family’s relationship with Cooper began with George E. Norcross Jr. and Anne Carol Conner Norcross, whose four sons — George E. III, John, Donald and Philip — were all born at the hospital.
According to the release, George Norcross Jr. served on the Cooper Hospital Board of Trustees from 1976 to 1983 and was a quiet but forceful advocate for concentrating high-quality health care in Camden at a time when other hospitals were retreating to the suburbs.
He, along with former Gov. Jim Florio, was among the earliest champions of establishing a medical school in southern New Jersey — a vision ultimately realized in 2012 with the opening of Cooper Medical School of Rowan University.
Anne Carol Conner Norcross, born and raised in the Smoky Mountains of eastern Tennessee, devoted years of her life to advocating for seniors and underserved Camden residents, working at the Camden County Senior Citizens Center while raising her four boys. Their commitment to Cooper has been carried forward by the next generation and is now being taken up by a third:
— George E. Norcross III has served on the Board of Trustees since 1990 and is the longest-serving chairman and board officer in the institution’s history.
— Philip A. Norcross, esq. serves as chairman of The Cooper Foundation Board of Trustees and vice chairman of the Cooper Health System Board of Trustees. He also is a member of its Executive Committee, Finance Committee and Treasury Subcommittee.
— Alessandra “Lexie” Triem Norcross, daughter of Sandra and George III, serves on The Cooper Foundation Board and as president of the Norcross Foundation. She is also the founder of PhillyVoice, a leading online news service covering the greater Philadelphia area.
The Norcross family’s gift comes at a consequential moment of growth in Cooper’s history. Over the past decade, Cooper has expanded through strategic investments, partnerships and acquisitions to become the largest and most comprehensive tertiary care academic health system in south New Jersey. In just the past several years, Cooper has:
— Acquired Cape Regional Health System, creating a combined system with more than 900 licensed beds, nearly $3 billion in annual revenue and more than 130 ambulatory locations across eight counties, while bringing Cooper’s academic medicine to Cape May and Atlantic counties.
— Announced plans for a major shore region expansion, including a multi-specialty campus in Cape May and Atlantic counties modeled on the recently opened, 166,000-square-foot Cooper Moorestown Campus, which offers more than 26 medical specialties, a surgery center, advanced diagnostics, and nearly 100 exam rooms.
— Launched “Project Imagine” in January 2025, a $3 billion Camden campus expansion that is the largest health care development project in New Jersey and eastern Pennsylvania history.
The project will include an expansion of MD Anderson Cancer Center at Cooper, three new patient towers with as many as 745 all-private inpatient beds, a state-of-the-art emergency department, expanded surgical capacity, a new neonatal intensive care unit and services, and modern education, research, and command-center space.
— Built southern New Jersey’s leading cancer program, MD Anderson Cancer Center at Cooper.
— Become an elite Level 1 Trauma Center — the only one in southern New Jersey and the busiest in the Philadelphia region — that trains medical personnel from multiple branches of the military.
— Announced plans for a new multi-specialty outpatient campus in Gloucester Township, a $300 million investment that will expand access to advanced specialty care services for residents across the region.
— Established affiliations with more than 20 regional hospitals, extending Cooper’s specialty expertise — including trauma, cardiac, neurosciences and cancer care — across southern New Jersey.
— Launched an accelerated BSN nursing program in partnership with BAYADA and Thomas Edison State University, expanding the pipeline of nurses to serve the region.
— Earned the highest credit ratings in its history, including an A+ rating from S&P Global Ratings in June 2025 and a corresponding A+ credit rating from Fitch, validating Cooper’s financial discipline and the strength of its expansion strategy.
— Been named the only New Jersey health system on Forbes’ America’s Best Large Employers 2026 list, ranking among the nation’s top large employers.
— Led the creation of Cooper Medical School of Rowan University, which opened in 2012, anchoring a growing “eds and meds” corridor in Camden alongside Rutgers–Camden, Rowan University and Camden County College.
— Grown to more than 14,000 team members, making Cooper the largest employer in Camden County and one of the largest in southern New Jersey, with more than 1,000 physicians practicing across 95 specialties. Cooper facilities receive more than 2.5 million visits annually, and Cooper clinicians have treated patients from all 50 states and 35 countries.
