OXFORD, Miss. – Visitors arriving to the University of Mississippi
campus by way of Highway 6 and Coliseum Drive soon will see new
entrance gates, thanks to a $250,000 commitment to Ole Miss from the
Delta Gamma House Corp.
“First impressions are important, and since Robert Khayat became
chancellor, one of our goals has been to make sure that our campus
entrances are attractive and welcoming to both visitors and students,”
said Gloria Kellum, vice chancellor for university relations. “We are
grateful to the Delta Gamma House Corp. for ensuring we achieve this
goal and, more importantly, for their strong commitment to bettering
Ole Miss.”
Although plans have not been finalized for the gates, University Architect Ian Banner said the brick and stone structures will be similar to those at other UM entrances. With completion of the Coliseum Drive gates, expected by the end of 2009, all main roads onto campus will have entrance gates.
“Our group wanted to make a lasting gift to the university,” said Carole Haney, president of the Delta Gamma House Corp. board and an alumnus of the Delta Gamma social sorority at Ole Miss. “We wanted to say ‘thank you.'”
The house corporation board, which consists of 12 UM Delta Gamma alumnae, oversees the operation of the Delta Gamma house on Sorority Row. The group worked with Kellum on the coordination of the gift after the vice chancellor spoke at a house corporation meeting. Funds for the gift came from member dues and alumni contributions to Delta Gamma along with investment income, Haney said.
“Supporting Ole Miss is something we believe to be worthy and important to all of us who participate in Delta Gamma,” she said.
The group is looking forward to making another gift to the university, said Judy Trott, who also serves on the house corporation board and retired from UM as dean of students in 2001. The Delta Gamma House Corp. plans to work with Kellum on placing a sign in front of Ventress Hall, Trott said. The historical marker will note that the Tiffany stained glass window inside the 135 year-old building was donated by Delta Gamma to commemorate the University Grays, the company of Ole Miss students and faculty killed in the Civil War.
The Delta Gamma House Corp. gift is part of the university’s MomentUM Campaign, a four-year initiative to raise $200 million. Funds raised through the campaign will support scholarships, graduate fellowships, faculty support, a basketball practice facility, residential colleges and a new law school on the Oxford campus. Also in the plans are a cancer center at the UM Medical Center and a new building to house the School of Pharmacy, both in Jackson.
For more information on making a gift to the University of Mississippi, visit http://www.umf.olemiss.edu/makeagift .