You're Key to COBA's Future

Gilmore Academic Endowment Park Project
Contributors Aid College with Paver Purchases

The James E. Gilmore Academic Endowment Park, rendered above in a digitally enhanced photograph, will grace the north entrance of the Smith-Hutson Business Building. A Beta Gamma Sigma Key will be the focal point of the new park. Click image for larger view.

The College of Business Administration at Sam Houston State University joined the ranks of the nation's most prestigious business schools in 1996, when accredited by the AACSB-The International Association for Management Education.

In the wake of that distinction, the college is raising funds to fuel important educational initiatives aimed at enhancing its high academic standing. At the same time, COBA is honoring the individual who spearheaded the successful accreditation effort -- James E. Gilmore, COBA's dean emeritus and former SHSU vice president of academic affairs.

Membership in Beta Gamma Sigma is the highest national recognition a student in business can receive in undergraduate or master's programs at schools accredited by the AACSB-The International Association for Management Education.

To honor Gilmore, while helping meet its developmental needs, COBA has launched the James E. Gilmore Academic Endowment Park project, a fund raising effort that includes the construction of a beautiful brick-paved student park at the north entrance of SHSU's Smith-Hutson Business Building. The focal point of the new park will be a Beta Gamma Sigma Key icon, the symbol of the honor society for students in schools accredited by the AACSB.

The stone pavers surrounding the key icon will be sold to pay for the park and key. Additional revenue raised by the project will be endowed in a fund for special COBA needs.

Inscribed for perpetuity by contributors, the stone pavers will recognize COBA friends making gifts of $100 or more to this important fund-raising initiative. The pavers will be available in four sizes and price ranges. The larger the stone, the more room allowed for an engraved inscription of the contributor's choosing:

• 8" x 4" for $100, allowing 3 lines, 12 characters per line;
• 12" x 6" for $200, allowing 4 lines, 18 characters per line;
• 12" x 12" for $500, allowing 6 lines, 18 characters per line; and
• 16" x 16" for $1000, allowing 10 lines, 20 characters per line.

The 16" x 16" pavers will be made of granite and can be inscribed with corporate logos. Additionally, graduating seniors are eligible for a 30 percent discount on pavers ordered prior to graduation.

"The park will provide students and guests a place to gather and interact, while offering an attractive addition to the Smith-Hutson Business Building," said R. Dean Lewis, COBA dean. "The funds raised by the project," he added, "will be used for many developmental needs of the college, allowing it to remain on the cutting edge of academic excellence."

The endowment, aiding the college in perpetuity, will also be a fitting tribute to James Gilmore's many years of service to COBA and SHSU.

Dr. James E. Gilmore

There is perhaps no other SHSU alumnus whose life has been so intricately woven into the fabric of Sam Houston State University as that of James Gilmore. For more than 40 years, he has touched the lives of literally thousands of SHSU students while making indelible contributions to the educational quality of the university.

Before serving as vice president for academic affairs, Gilmore served COBA as professor, department chair and dean. Prior to that, he spent his formative years as a Bearkat himself, earning a bachelor's degree from SHSU in 1952 and a master's degree in 1958.

Before retiring in 1997, Gilmore was honored as a Distinguished SHSU Alumnus.

"We are extremely grateful for the many contributions Dr. Gilmore has made to our program during his distinguished tenure," said Lewis. "With the James E. Gilmore Academic Endowment Park, we have an opportunity to honor this remarkable man and benefit the institution to which he has dedicated a lifetime of service."

"He has motivated and guided generations of aspiring students who have gone on to achieve great things," Lewis continued. "This endowment fund provides our alumni with a special opportunity to thank Dr. Gilmore for his contributions to their success."

Anyone interested in purchasing a stone paver for the James E. Gilmore Academic Endowment Park should contact the College of Business Administration at (409) 294-1254.

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Media Contact: Phillip Rollfing
June 19, 1998
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