Centennial Capital Campaign update
As the Centennial Capital Campaign moves forward in its second year, excitement is in the air. Spratt Memorial Stadium is nearing completion, resulting in an outstanding stadium building, Stadium Club and concourse; and the largest video scoreboard in Division II.
Jerry Pickman ’85, executive director of the Missouri Western Foundation and vice president for University Advancement, said he is pleased with the campaign results to date.
“We have received outstanding pledges and gifts from many generous donors, and we are excited about the future,” Pickman said.
When the stadium project was well underway, he said the campaign began to focus on the Potter Hall renovation project.
Potter Hall, which houses the School of Fine Arts (art, music, and theatre, cinema and dance), was under construction when Missouri Western moved to its new campus in 1969 and was completed in 1971. The building was built to accommodate only nominal growth, and within a few years, faculty members and students had already outgrown the space.
An addition in 1986 helped alleviate the problem, but enrollment in the programs continued to grow.
Through the strategic use of reserves, Missouri Western recently added a circle drive, more restrooms and a percussion space. Thanks to Missouri House Bill 19, the University received $4.8 million in capital improvements, and $325,000 is earmarked for ceiling, carpeting and HVAC improvements in Potter Hall.
The Missouri Western Arts Society recently donated its 2015 membership dues totaling $32,000 to the Potter Hall project, which will be used to leverage the state funds and be used for work done at the same time as HB19 work.
Immediate facility needs in Potter Hall include increased practice, classroom and rehearsal space; graphic design labs; a black box theater and natural-light studios. Cost for these improvements is approximately $5 million.
Another need is for additional performance space. Currently, the Potter Hall theater seats 430 and is used for both music performances and theatre productions. In the past three years, the number of those performances has increased, and many of the music ensembles must perform off-campus because of conflicting performance and rehearsal schedules and limited performance spaces.
The results of the campus master planning initiative highlight Missouri Western’s need for additional performance space. Performance space at peer universities revealed that Missouri Western is the only university without a large performance hall. Missouri Western also had the lowest number of performance seating per student of the 10 universities surveyed.
Additionally, a gallery and lobby space will be created near the 800-seat performance center to display the works of internationally known sculptor Brent Collins, who has committed to giving his life’s work to Missouri Western on permanent loan. Cost of the performance center and gallery/lobby space is approximately $10 million.
“The campaign hopes to address as many of the facility needs in Potter Hall as possible,” Pickman said. “The renovation work will help us recruit the best and brightest students and serve as one of the region’s leading fine and performing arts centers.”
To support the Centennial Capital Campaign, you may donate online or call Kim Weddle, director of development, at (816) 271-5648 or email weddle@missouriwestern.edu.
Gift supports CSB entrepreneurs
A Savannah, Missouri native who has been involved in the Craig School of Business’s Applied Entrepreneurship program pledged $100,000 to the Centennial Capital Campaign. Tom Payn, a longtime friend of Steve Craig, for whom the School of Business is named, made the gift to support the entrepreneurship program.
The program, which began in 2009 with a partnership between Craig, Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory and Missouri Western, gives students and alumni of the Craig School of Business the opportunity to compete to own a franchise. In the ensuing years, the program has expanded to include other businesses in addition to RMCF, and by the end of last year, program participants were operating 19 businesses in 11 states.
Payn, who lives in a suburb of Denver, was on the panel of judges that selected the first entrepreneur, Seth Lyons ’08, and Payn has returned to judge every competition since.
“I continue to be a part of the program ultimately because of the great results we have all seen from the graduates and winners,” he said. “In addition, it is a pleasure for me to get back ‘home’ every year and see the number of people who have also participated throughout the years. I also hope that my own business background has added some value to the overall program.”
The pledge is not the first time Payn has supported the program. In fact, he made business loans to two of the Missouri Western graduates to help them open their businesses, and has contributed funding several times over the years. After the 2015 competition last June, Payn said he decided to make a large pledge to the program.
Payn, who graduated from the University of Denver, opened his first Subway sandwich shop in 1989, and over the years, has owned 40 stores. In 2013, he owned 33 at one time, employing 325 people and generating about $18.5 million in sales.
“Looking back, those first few years of working 60-70 hours per week seem so far in the distance,” he said. “Today, some of the fruits of the sacrifices I made allow me to invest in other opportunities.”
Payn noted that he admires Craig’s dedication to the entrepreneurship program. “I don’t think even Steve envisioned what the program has become when it started. His commitment and generosity to the program is truly his legacy that he has built for Missouri Western,” Payn said. “For me to piggyback even a bit onto this legacy is a privilege. Like everyone else associated with the program, I take a great deal of pride in the successes that the graduates have had.”