MC announces funding for two strategic initiatives
Nov. 11, 2021
Maryville College recently announced the receipt of two major gifts that will enable the school to build an even stronger identity as a college of the Great Smoky Mountains focused on tying student learning to its opportune location.
MC President Dr. Bryan F. Coker announced during the annual Founder’s Day event on Oct. 22 that Dr. Dean Boldon and Mary Boldon and Dr. Dorsey D. “Dan” Ellis ’60 and Sondra Wagner Ellis ’60 had made donations to fund separate but related initiatives that will support the vision for Maryville College to become, as Coker outlined in his 2020 installation address, “of and for the region.”
GSE for all students
The Boldon gift will fund a new version of the Great Smokies Experience (GSE) for all Maryville College students. Created and first offered in 2013 by Maryville College faculty members Dr. Doug Sofer, Dr. Mark O’Gorman, Dr. Ariane Schratter and Mr. Bruce Guillaume ’76 and Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont Education Director John DiDiego, GSE is a two-week summer experience for high school students that takes place on campus and at Tremont.
“… This new [GSE] program will be available to all students in their second year at the College and will offer outdoor exploration, leadership and team building, as well as education about our region, environment and sustainability,” the president said to alumni and donors who had gathered for the Oct. 22 Founder’s Day event.
Boldon, a sociology professor, retired in 2007. While academic dean of the College from 1986 until 1998, he oversaw the creation of the College’s environmental studies major.
President’s Circle members for 31 years and members of the Chilhowee Tier of the Isaac Anderson Society, the Boldons’ most recent gift funds the Great Smokies Experience for three years, covering costs of travel to and from the campus and the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, as well as compensation for staff and faculty managing the program. The experience is slated to begin for MC sophomores in 2023.
New position funded
The gift from the Ellises will allow for the creation of a new staff position focused on environmental initiatives and sustainability. The new position will support, centralize and elevate the College’s environmental and sustainability efforts and programs by working collaboratively with faculty, staff, students and administration, as well as scientific partners in the community. The position also will play a supporting role in advancement efforts and potential partnerships as they relate to the environment and sustainability, including strategic fundraising for a new science facility on the campus, Coker shared with Founder’s Day attendees. Specifics of the position are being finalized, and the College expects to share more information in the coming weeks.
Both graduates of the Class of 1960, Dan and Sondra have been generous supporters of the College since graduation, with 34 years at the President’s Circle and cumulative giving placing them in the LeConte Tier of the Isaac Anderson Society. Dan has more than 20 years of combined service on the College’s Board of Directors, spanning terms that began in 1988 and ended in 2012. He chaired the governing body from 2004 until 2011.
“We are so very thankful to both the Boldons and the Ellises for their substantial generosity,” Coker said, following the event. “Without a doubt, these donor-funded initiatives will give our students even more opportunities to, as we like to say, ‘study everything so that you are prepared for anything.’”
Other initiatives announced
During Founder’s Day, Coker announced plans to construct the Austin Coleman Piper Memorial Track and begin recruiting for men’s and women’s track and field teams. The new facility, named for the beloved board chair and 1968 alumnus who passed away unexpectedly Aug. 26 following an accident, will include a turf infield for use by the College’s current teams. It is expected to cost between $2 million and $3 million.
“Gifts already made to MC in memory of Cole Piper are being earmarked for this facility, and additional fundraising for the track facility will be coordinated through our Advancement Office,” he said.
Coker also celebrated the formation of a pep band and announced plans to revive a marching band program by 2024. The College hasn’t sponsored a marching band since the 1988-1989 academic year.