UT reaches $1 billion campaign for Tennessee goal ahead of schedule; Anderson gift puts UT over the top in campaign

The Press 6.24.10 The Campaign for Tennessee, the most ambitious fundraising effort in the 216-year history of the University of Tennessee, has reached its $1 billion goal 18 months ahead of schedule.
While the campaign’s official end is not until December 2011, a total of $1,023,331,880 already has been committed.
“This monumental success of reaching our goal early is a grand statement by our alumni and friends that they believe in the work of our faculty and leadership as well as the importance of the University of Tennessee in their lives and in the future of our state,” said UT Interim President Jan Simek.
The campaign’s success places UT among an elite group of only 28 public universities that have successfully completed fundraising campaigns of at least $1 billion, according to the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education.
“We’re proud that our donors enabled UT Martin to exceed our campaign goal,” said Dr. Tom Rakes, UT Martin chancellor.
“This has made it possible to proceed with yet another increased amount exceeding $50 million for the UT Martin portion of the Campaign for Tennessee.”
In March, UT Martin announced reaching $43 million, making it the first campus in the UT System to meet its campaign goal, not once, but twice.
The gift that put the campaign over the top came from the family of UT Board of Trustees member Charles C. Anderson Jr., CEO of Anderson Media Corp., and his wife, Moll, an author; lifestyle, marketing and communications expert; and TV host. They live in Knoxville.
In recognizing the Andersons’ generosity, the University is naming the College of Business Administration’s Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation in their honor.
The newly-named Anderson Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation houses a unique and vibrant program with incredible interest by students and faculty with a goal of establishing future business that will positively impact the economy in the region. 
The gift also has established the Moll R. Anderson Scholarship Endowment to provide scholarships for single parents with special consideration given to parents whose children participate in the Boys and Girls Clubs.
So far, more than 98,000 donors have given to the Campaign for Tennessee. More than 11,000 current and retired faculty and staff have donated $70.5 million as part of the family campaign led by UT President Emeritus Joe Johnson.
Campaign for Tennessee co-chairs Jim and Natalie Haslam of Knoxville and Brenda Lawson of Cleveland say they are excited by the opportunities made possible by the campaign’s success.
“The Campaign for Tennessee is not about numbers; it is about people. But the amount of money given and pledged allows the university to take the lead in being the engine of economic success for our state,” Jim Haslam said.
Lawson added, “We have worked to make sure the university has what it needs, whether it is support to keep our outstanding professors or scholarships to ensure that financial need is not a barrier to access for students who want to attend any of UT’s campuses.”
The Campaign for Tennessee’s generational impact is already visible on each University of Tennessee campus.
Private gifts provided significant funding for the following:
• Min Kao Electrical Engineering and Computer Science building, UT Knoxville
• Howard H. Baker Jr. Center for Public Policy, UT Knoxville
• Brenda Lawson Student-Athlete Success Center, UT Chattanooga
• Renovation of the Dunn Dental Building, UT Health Science Center
• John and Ann Tickle Small Animal Hospital, UT Institute of Agriculture.
• Jim Ayers, UT Martin Parsons Center, Decatur County
• Houston Gordon, Institute for Civic Engagement, UT Martin
• Lew and Mary Jo Dougherty University Scholar Endowment, UT Martin
• Ray and Wilma Smith Professorships, UT Martin
• Tom and Kathleen Elam Scholarship Fund, UT Martin
• Charles and Bettye Moore Scholarship Fund, UT Martin
While the $1 billion goal has been met 18 months early, the campaign will continue until its scheduled completion date of December 2011.

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