As president of UT Arlington since 2004, James D. Spaniolo has overseen extraordinary growth in enrollment, research activity, and philanthropic giving.
A Little Help from Our Friends
Message from the President
This has been a remarkable year for philanthropy at UT Arlington.
Thanks to the generosity of our alumni and friends, as well as numerous corporations and foundations, we continue to set records in private support for the University. For the second year in a row, we have generated more than $15 million annually in private gifts and pledges. As a matter of fact, total giving for the past two years exceeds that of the previous five years combined.
That’s a tremendous achievement for a public institution with a relatively young development program. It’s also a trend we’d like to continue.
Our alumni increasingly are becoming more central to our fundraising efforts. Like never before, they are stepping forward and playing a pivotal role in providing the private funds necessary to help fuel UT Arlington’s progress.
I’d like to share two examples of outstanding leadership gifts that alumni made in just the past few months. I think these gifts merit special attention, not just because of the dollar amounts but also because of the motivation and the passion of the individuals who made them.
Alan Petsche ’80 and Bonnie Smith Petsche ’86 recently committed $1 million in support of College Park Center. These dedicated alums credit the University for playing a significant role in enriching their lives and for spearheading the revitalization that’s currently transforming downtown Arlington.
The University will recognize their gift by naming College Park Center’s basketball court Petsche Court in their honor. Alan and Bonnie have always maintained close ties to the University, and Alan currently serves on our Development Board, the advisory group that helps generate and steward leadership gifts to the University.
Mike and Janet Greene have created an endowment in the College of Engineering totaling $1 million. Mike graduated in 1969 with a degree in mechanical engineering and recently retired after 46 years with Energy Future Holdings. The Greenes wanted to give back to the University and, at the same time, have their gift serve as an example for others. They established a $500,000 endowment that is being doubled through the Maverick Match, an innovative program that leverages endowment gifts with royalties from the University’s natural gas resources.
UT Arlington will recognize the Greenes’ gift by naming the Engineering Research Building’s new quadrangle the Janet and Mike Greene Research Quadrangle. Mike currently serves on the executive committee of our Development Board as well as on the College of Engineering Advisory Board.
We are thankful for the confidence that caring, giving people like the Petsches and the Greenes place in our institution. We applaud all of our alumni who are taking a fresh look at their alma mater and finding more and more reasons to be proud—and meaningful ways to express that pride.
It is no secret that UT Arlington has lofty aspirations and an ambitious agenda. We set our sights high and then raise them even higher with each passing day. That’s how good universities become great. That’s how great universities become top-tier institutions of higher learning. The support of our alumni and friends is more important than ever.
With the opening of College Park Center (visit www.utacollegepark.com) in February, we hope to see more of you back on campus—and more often. If you haven’t visited recently, I invite you to return soon and see just how dramatically the University has changed.
And while the changes at UT Arlington have been sweeping, our core values remain the same. Our University’s purpose—simply stated, but profoundly complex—is to continually develop real solutions and prepare real people for extraordinary success in the real world. We need look no further than our alumni—all 145,000 of you—to find tremendous satisfaction in our endeavors. Your success is our success.
