Northern Arizona University Renames College of Business

NAU received its largest donation ever, totaling $25 million from William Franke, managing partner of Indigo Partners and former chairman of America West Airlines and other Arizona-based organizations. William’s gift will be allocated to NAU’s College of Business to pay for new faculty, program development, and scholarships. In his honor, the COB will be renamed as the W.A. Franke College of Business. 

The donation was initiated by Scott Coor of Phoenix, who invited William to NAU in 1976 to speak to a student business fraternity. Although William Franke never attended Northern Arizona University, he was popular with the students and with Scott; who ended up providing him with a resume and being hired. Scott worked with William for almost ten years and they have kept in contact ever since. A few years ago, Scott volunteered his time to help raise funds for NAU and asked William to consider making a contribution. 

The donation will go to enhance the college’s curriculum, especially in the areas of communication and business strategizing, as well as provide student scholarships. William feels strongly about providing scholarships for under-represented students groups, such as Native Americans, Hispanics, and first-generation college attendees. “I have sympathy for this issue,” he states. “We are a country that, since our founding, has integrated immigrants and the underrepresented into our society. In today’s world, to successfully achieve that integration, you need education.”

William is a supporter of many aspects of education. He has been active in the civic community and is the chairman of Phoenix 40, a member of the International Board of Barrow Neurological Institute, chairman of COMPAS, a member of the Dean’s Council at Arizona State University Business College, and a member of the Dean’s Circle at the Stanford Law School. 

 
The University of Arkansas Receives Grant to Explore Impacts of Faith and Spirituality in the Workplace

As business becomes more global, we are increasingly interacting with people from a wide-array of cultures. The differences we encounter in our belief systems make for both challenges and vibrancy in the workplace. The University of Arkansas’s COB will begin teaching elective courses on the topic of faith-in-the workplace to raise awareness, increase sensitivity, and cultivate how our belief systems can be constructive resources for business. 

The Tyson Family Foundation awarded UA with a $2 million gift to establish the John H. Tyson Endowed Chair in Faith and Spirituality in the Workplace to instruct these courses. The courses will help shape personal and corporate conduct, expand knowledge of cultural belief systems in the workplace, and encourage intellectual diversity of thought. The Tyson grant was matched by the Walton Family Charitable Support Foundation and is part of a more than $27 million award pledged to the university in 2005. 

 
Alumni Commitment Enables Better Learning Environments for Students at Georgia State 

A $5 million grant was pledged to Georgia State University from Carl R. Zwerner to build new facilities for the College of Business and College of Law. These new facilities will be part of the proposed GSU Professional Center. The Center will include a classroom building and auditorium that will greatly enhance both colleges. 

“There always was a great camaraderie between students and professors,” states Zwerner. “My hope is that this new auditorium not only will provide a state-of-the-art resource for students, faculty, and visitors, but that it also will enhance the spirit that has made Georgia State University so vibrant and so special as it continues to grow in the future.”