John Moore (left), former Chairman
of the Board of Trustees, is welcomed
back to the Board by current Board Chairman Bill Patrick (right)
Erskine Board Announces $2 Million
Gift
The Erskine College and Seminary Board
of Trustees announced a gift of $2 million from the estate of the
late Dr. and Mrs. Ambrose M. Wylie, and reported that annual giving
to the institution had surpassed $10 million in the past fiscal year,
the second highest one-year total in school history.
The Board also heard reports on planned
renovation projects for the Erskine Building (which will house five
academic departments), Memorial Hall (music) and Erskine's six dormitories.
Student input is being solicited
during this planning process, and SGA President Chris Spires of Winnsboro
told the Board, "We want our dorms to reflect the flavor of the Erskine
experience, that community feeling that we all enjoy here. We want
a lobby on every floor of the dorms so we can congregate, and porches
and common areas for rocking chairs and swings, where we can sit for
long periods of time and talk, study or work on our computers."
Spires joked that "sometimes we
students are selfish and we think that the college is only for us.
"But we believe that the Board is
the backbone of this institution and we appreciate what you do, and
know that we wouldn't have all the wonderful things we have now if
not for the work that you do," he said. "We promise to keep looking
for things we think will make this a better place, and communicate
those ideas to you."
While these projects are still
in the planning stages, the Board approved funds for renovation work
on the Chi House, for paving the parking lot behind Bonner Dormitory,
and for general improvements at Reid Hall and the Galloway Center.
The Board heard a report that contributions
to the institution for the fiscal year 1999-2000 surpassed $10 million,
and that the school's annual funds campaign and athletic club fundraising
had set record numbers.
In addition to the Wylie gift,
Erskine accepted gifts totaling more than $526,000, including $222,936
from Allen N. Crosson of Newberry for the purchase of a gift annuity,
and $150,000 from the estate of Martha E. Jones honoring her late
aunt by establishing the Sue E. Morton Scholarship Fund.
Other gifts included:
•$48,093 from the estate
of Mary Elyse Edmunds of McCormick;
•$47,903 from the estate of William
B. Byrd as an addition to the Orene Irwin Byrd Scholarship Fund;
•$25,000 from the estate
of J. Allen Smith;
•$15,000 from Mrs. Wilhemina
E. Overby of Kingstree to establish the L.T. "Tom" Overby Scholarship;
•$10,590 from Mrs. John G.
Brawley Jr., family and friends of the late Dr. John G. Brawley, to
establish the John G. Brawley Jr. Music Scholarship;
•$4,592 from the estate of
Charlotte Phillips; and
•$2,164 from the estate of
Paul Powers Sr.
Prior to their deaths, Ambrose
Wylie and his wife Chris Wylie provided gifts that enabled the Wylie
Care Facility at the Due West Retirement Center to be established
in 1989. The couple also contributed funds for computer-assisted music
instruction at Erskine, and were supporters of the school's music
and fine arts program and library.
Ambrose Wylie died in 1996 after
a lifetime of service to others. A native of Chester, he was a 1928
Erskine graduate who went on to be employed by two insurance companies
and the U.S. Postal Service.
Chris Wylie, a former teacher
and librarian, continued to live at the Due West Retirement Center
until her death earlier this year.
"The Wylies were remarkable people
who made many wonderful gifts to Erskine, the Associate Reformed Presbyterian
Church and the Due West Retirement Center," said Lee W. Logan, Erskine
Vice President for Development. "The college is grateful to both of
these remarkable people for establishing a charitable remainder trust
that has resulted in one of this institution's largest gifts."
The Board also:
•reported that the institution
would end the fiscal year with a surplus;
•reported that the endowment
fund had reached $36 million;
•named retiring seminary
professors Ray King Professor of Church History Emeritus and William
Kuykendall as John Montgomery Bell Professor of Biblical Studies Emeritus;
•named retiring college professor
Ben Farley as the Eunice Witherspoon Bell Younts and Willie Camp Younts
Professor Emeritus of Bible, Religion and Philosophy; and
•participated in a day-long
retreat on the future of Christian higher education from a board perspective,
led by Dr. Robert Andringa, president of the Council for Christian
Colleges and Universities.
