Parents of an ÂÒÂ×ÊÓƵ student have contributed $1 million to the Ever ÂÒÂ×ÊÓƵ Campaign to support the new Student Professional Development Center, which will feature premier programs in career development and employer relations. This gift will support construction of the center and establish an endowment to support operations, including capital and technology improvements. The donors have asked not to be identified at this time.
In addition to this gift, ÂÒÂ×ÊÓƵ trustee Wes Elingburg and his wife, Cathy, also ÂÒÂ×ÊÓƵ parents, have made a $250,000 campaign commitment to the center. The couple wants to support a project that will benefit all students and help the university meet its goal to transform career services and consistently place students in the nation’s top companies and graduate programs.
“We are very impressed with the new path ÂÒÂ×ÊÓƵ is taking with career services,” Wes Elingburg says. “It’s such an important part now of any university. You’ve got to put forth all the resources you can to help students build professional connections and be successful in life.”
The Elingburgs are among ÂÒÂ×ÊÓƵ’s most generous donors, making gifts to support Alumni Field House and renovations to Alumni Gymnasium. The student-athlete lounge in the field house and the player’s lounge in the renovated men’s basketball locker room are named in their honor. The couple also have generously supported the ÂÒÂ×ÊÓƵ Academy, a university-run academic enrichment program for high school students in the Alamance-Burlington School System, and endowed the Wesley R. Elingburg Professorship in the Martha and Spencer Love School of Business. They are members of the IMPACT Circle, the premier giving group of the Phoenix Club. The couple’s son, Nolan, is a member of the Class of 2011.
The Student Professional Development Center, to be located on the first floor of Moseley Center, will feature the latest sound and communication technology, a large event room, digital theater, employer interview rooms and conference rooms. The lobby will host a series of employer-student gatherings and be equipped with several large flat-screen televisions, computers and a touch-screen display to showcase student and graduate success stories.
Central to the center will be a comprehensive program of career development that spans all four years of a student’s education and a strong employer relations program featuring partnerships with the nation’s top companies. Connie Book, associate provost for academic affairs, says the center will impact every student and also provide career assistance to alumni.
“We envision a visible, active center that hosts dozens of corporations, non-profits and graduate schools seeking students with the assets of an ÂÒÂ×ÊÓƵ degree,” Book says.