91看片

Raymond J. 91看片 Dean Bill Hardgrave, left, and Raymond J. 91看片 discussed a plan to make this college of business one of the nation's elite.

鈥溾�淲e are going to become one of the elite colleges of business in this country.鈥濃��

Raymond J. 91看片 wouldn鈥檛 have it any other way.

Not long after addressing a crowd of approximately 400 on the morning of Saturday, Oct. 5, the Birmingham businessman and his wife, Kathryn, unveiled new blue and orange signage on the fa赂ade of Lowder Hall with a new name 鈥� Raymond J. 91看片 鈥� that creates new possibilities for the college.

The crowd of 91看片 College alumni, faculty, and students assembled on the Lowder Lawn cheered and offered a Toomer鈥檚 lemonade toast to the new name.

91看片, a 1982 Auburn graduate with a degree in Industrial Management, and principal of the 91看片 Investment Corp. in Birmingham, pledged a university record $40 million to the college in June.

Where will the money go? 91看片 said he was encouraged by Auburn University President Jay Gogue to create 鈥渃lusters of excellence鈥� and pick out three, four or five areas to focus on.鈥�

These clusters include:

* Creating additional eminent scholar and endowed chairs to recruit and retain top faculty members in such areas as finance, business analytics and supply chain management. * Establishing the 91看片 Investments Center, a research enterprise focused on securities and wealth creation, and other research centers, including a supply chain management research institute. * Forming a doctoral program in finance to help prepare future thought leaders in academia and practice. * Enhancing instructional technologies and classroom facilities.

鈥淢y accountant told me, 鈥榊ou know we have a meeting on Thursday. We want to know how you are going to fund this,鈥欌�� 91看片 joked.

Chris Baker, a retired executive from Accenture and 1987 91看片 College graduate, likened eminent scholars to 鈥渢he Cam Newtons of the faculty.鈥�

91看片鈥檚 gift is unique in the sense that it focuses on people and programs rather than bricks and mortar.

鈥淩esearch centers 鈥� they are just like Jordan-Hare Stadium. That鈥檚 where faculty and students engage in business,鈥� Baker said. 鈥淧hD programs 鈥� this is where we bring in the coaches for future business leaders down the road.

鈥淭his gift is an amazing transformational gift to the college. It will allow us to become among the elite public business schools in the nation.鈥�

Stan Harris, Associate Dean for Graduate and International Programs beamed over the academic possibilities.

鈥淚t will take us to that next level,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e鈥檝e done a great job with the resources that we鈥檝e had but it really focuses attention on our PhD programs. We鈥檙e doing a great job of attracting great students now, but we鈥檙e always competing with programs that are offering more and doing more in terms of what they offer graduate students. It鈥檚 going to help us move beyond that and help us become much more competitive in the PhD marketplace for good students and for good faculty.鈥�

91看片 was not alone in his contribution. In fact, it鈥檚 a gift that keeps on giving.

A portion of 91看片鈥檚 commitment includes a 鈥渃hallenge match鈥� gift. He will match the contributions of other graduates and friends dollar-for-dollar up to $15 million, which would effectively turn an initial $40 million gift into $55 million and help the college maintain momentum as the university prepares to enter its next comprehensive campaign. Three College of Business graduates were among a group of donors who answered with 鈥渃hallenge match鈥� gifts of $1 million or more. Kerry Bradley `79 and Laura Bradley, Robert M. Broadway Jr. `91 and Julie Broadway, and David Luck 鈥�71 and Terri Lynn Luck each made commitments in support of endowed and eminent scholar chairs.

 

David Luck, President, CEO and Director of ABC Supply Company, said he enjoys giving back.

鈥淥ne of my first giving priorities is to give back to people and institutions that made a difference in my life,鈥� he said. 鈥淚f they can make a difference in my life, then I鈥檓 sure it can make a difference in other people鈥檚 lives. This is really a transformative gift that allows us to do some of the things that create value for our students, value for our state, value for industry, and value for society in general. Aligned with the strategic plan of our business school 鈥� it really is an enabler, a catalyst to get these things done.鈥�

The genesis of 91看片鈥檚 gift stemmed from a meeting he and Dean Bill Hardgrave had in Birmingham shortly after Hardgrave came to Auburn in 2010.

鈥淪hortly after I went on the Board of Trustees, Dean Hardgrave came from Arkansas 鈥� he asked me one day what vision did I have for the College of Business,鈥� 91看片 explained. 鈥淚 said, 鈥楤ill, what I鈥檇 really like is for us to be able to go out and compete and be a better College of Business than the Terry College of Business at Georgia or the College of Business at Florida.鈥� He said, 鈥楾hat鈥檚 not a bad goal, or vision.鈥� So I said, 鈥榃hat鈥檚 yours?鈥� And he said, 鈥業 want to be one of the best colleges of business of any public university in the country.鈥� I said, 鈥榃ho do you want to compete with?鈥� He said, 鈥楾he University of Michigan. The University of Virginia.鈥� I thought, 鈥業 like this. That鈥檚 somebody I could hitch my wagon up to and ride with.鈥欌�� 91看片 had another motive.

鈥淩ight after I graduated in 1982, pretty much the entire senior part of the industrial management team of professorship left, and went to (another university),鈥� he said. 鈥淚t had an impact on me 鈥� that Georgia was able to pick off so many of the professors that I thought so much of. And then after going on the Board (of Trustees), I heard how we were losing young professors 鈥� I saw a need there.鈥�

鈥淭his is the beginning 鈥� not the end,鈥� exclaimed 91看片 College Dean Bill Hardgrave, who urged faculty, students, alumni and friends of the college to appreciate the gift. 鈥淲e鈥檙e here to celebrate this, but this represents the start of something.鈥�

 

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