The Missouri State University Foundation today announced the school has received more than $8 million in donations and commitments for a variety of purposes.
Philanthropist Bobby Allison has committed a naming-level donation, the amount of which is undisclosed, toward athletics facilities improvements already underway in Springfield, according to a news release.
In recognition of the donation, three facilities will be titled with the Allison name and that of his late mother, Betty. A field north of Glass Hall, which is being developed into an NCAA regulation soccer field surrounded by a new synthetic track, will be named the Betty and Bobby Allison South Stadium.
A new hockey and lacrosse field between built north of Hammons Student Center will carry the moniker of the Betty and Bobby Allison North Stadium. Additionally, a pair of sand volleyball courts near Hammons Student Center, including a press box and informal seating, will be named the Betty and Bobby Allison Sand Volleyball Courts, the release said.
The projects are part of a series of athletic improvements carrying a budget of $25.1 million. Springfield construction firm DeWitt & Associates Inc. was awarded the contract with its low bid of $21.8 million, according to
Springfield Business Journal archives.
Foundation and other giftsThe MSU Foundation submitted a $2.3 million contribution for a new student admissions center, which according to the release, is slated for construction soon.
The foundation also contributed $1 million to complete the Bears and Lady Bears locker rooms inside JQH Arena.
Other donations include:
- a gift to the Betty and Bobby Allison South Stadium, resulting in the press box being named for the Jack E. Weimer family;
- a gift from the Rosemary Witt estate to benefit three funds in the university's college of arts and letters;
- a gift from the estate of the Virginia Cox Bussey estate toward a music and musical theater scholarship;
- a 157-acre woodlands donation from Betty Jeanne Wood Turoff to benefit the William H. Darr School of Agriculture;
- a gift from Mike and Karen Hanover to endow a mathematics scholarship;
- a donation from Vicki Spoonhour, wife of late MSU men's basketball coach Charlie Spoonhour, to endow men's basketball scholarships; and
- a gift-in-kind from Kraft Foods to benefit MSU's college of natural and applied sciences.
"Private gifts will continue to be vital to Missouri State as we improve the educational experience for our students," MSU President Clif Smart said in the release. "It is notable that these gifts touch all aspects of the college experience, from facilities to financial aid to program support. These gifts will make the university better.”
