Development Update
Dear alumni and friends,
Happy New Year! All of us in the College of Business Administration are excited to start this new year in a brand new, state-of-the-art home — the James A. Haslam II Business Building. The classrooms, team meeting rooms, conference spaces, and common areas continue to amaze all of us with their capabilities. It certainly is a moving reminder of the constant growth of our college and success of the students and faculty.
To date, the college has received $80.6 million in campaign contributions. At just over halfway into the seven-year Campaign for Tennessee, this is truly something to be proud of. Just as excellence is expected of our students, it is expected from us as a faculty and staff as well; thus, our plan for the remainder of this campaign is to work vigorously toward smashing our goal of $80 million.
While $80 million certainly is a fantastic testament to the loyalty of our alumni, the majority of these gifts are made up of deferred gifts and endowments that the college will wait several years to fully benefit from. With this in mind, both the present and future provide us with great challenges. Student and faculty support is increasingly important as our college works head-on to meet the challenges of today’s economy. Thus, the need for annual gifts has become vital to the success of the college. These types of gifts may, of course, be made to individual departments. However, the College Fund for Business Administration also is in place so that undesignated gifts from alumni and friends may go to the college’s areas of greatest need during any current year. We encourage all alumni, on whatever level is appropriate for them, to consider a gift to the College Fund.
As we look ahead to the future of our college, the new building presents a unique need – technology funding. While there is roughly $7 million in cutting-edge technology currently invested in this building, the college needs private support in order to maintain this great asset as one that provides endless support for our students and faculty. If you have not yet visited the building, I hope you will soon. In every classroom, meeting room, even each hallway, there is technology that makes every student’s experience a richer and more fulfilling one. For more information on technology and funding needs, please contact us at 865-974-8911.
We hope to see you soon!
Best regards,
Chip Bryant
Senior Director of Development