With a name like Haslam above the door, people are sure to take notice.
The UT College of Business was renamed after Tennessee alumnus Jim Haslam in honor of a $50 million contribution from the Haslam family in October. The donation, in conjunction with the nearly $105,000 raised by Big Orange Give, has provided the Haslam College of Business with an almost unprecedented amount of funds to expand and foster growth within the college.
Stephen Mangum, dean of the Haslam College of Business, sees the renaming of the college as a step foward in improving the reputation of the school.
“People take notice of colleges when they are named, it draws attention to the school,” Mangum said, citing only one Top 25 business school to his knowledge that is not named after a donor.
Mangum said he hopes the school’s new name will reflect the success of the individual onto the college itself.
“You want the name that goes on the door of the building to be one that you can take pride in,” Mangum said, noting that change “represents the kind of core ideals and values that you’d like young people aspiring towards.”
Jim Haslam was an offensive lineman on UT’s 1951 national championship team as well as the founder of Pilot Corporation. The father of Gov. Bill Haslam, Jim is noted for his philanthropy toward the school and to institutions around the city.
Mangum plans on appropriating the donation funds in three ways: by retaining esteemed faculty, “picking off” some of the leading professors and business professionals from other universities and by raising student quality through an increase of scholarships and fellowships.
Speaking on behalf of the Haslam family, Stephen explained why the family prefers the term “philanthropic investment” rather than “gift” when referring to their numerous contributions.
“We see this school as doing some very good things,” Magnum said. “We want to see them have even better results, so we’re willing to invest our resources in the school’s vision and progress for the future, with every expectation in that sense of a return on our investment.”
In addition to the money received from the Haslams, the Big Orange Give provided over $105,000 to the Haslam College of Business through alumni contributions. With each college setting its own contribution goals, the Haslam College of Business far exceeded any other college in terms of money sought, with the College of Engineering and the College of Law trailing second with $50,000 contribution goals each.
For Scott Rabenold, vice chancellor for Development and Alumni Affairs who heads the fundraising efforts for UT, the marginal difference in contribution goals largely stems from the business college’s 100th anniversary initiative.
“There was a goal by the college to really stretch themselves to say ‘We need to find a way to get $100,000 on our 100th anniversary,'” Rabenold said.
Rather than attributing higher expectations from business college alumni, Scott maintained the higher goal set by the Haslam College of Business stemmed entirely from the college’s anniversary.
“The anniversary played a very significant role in what sort of goal we set, and we’re incredibly proud we achieved it,” he said.
