By MCS Staff 04.25.2014

President Greer announced a new academic structure that combines the college’s nine academic areas into five schools, with Milligan’s business school the first to be named, thanks to a donation from trustee and chair of BancTenn Corporation Dr. William B. Greene, Jr.

 

“Today we are excited to announce a reorganization of our academic programs in a way that emphasizes the underlying philosophy that all knowledge is one,” said Greer in a press conference today in the Gregory Center. “This new model allows us to our continue our growth… and continue to add programs that meet the needs of our students and the marketplace.”

 

Each of the colleges’ academic majors will fit into one of the following schools: the William B. Greene, Jr. School of Business and Technology, the School of Social Sciences and Education, the School of Sciences and Allied Health, the School of Arts and Humanities and the School of Bible and Ministry.

 

Milligan’s future merger with Emmanuel Christian Seminary will be an important part this transition and will potentially begin fall 2015. The School of Bible and Ministry, along with the other remaining academic schools, will be named upon donation.

 

Greer announced Greene’s multi-million dollar donation to the business school comes on the heels of Milligan’s 150th anniversary in 2016. The amount of money given is unable to be disclosed, according to Greer.

 

“I’d like to keep that personal,” he said. “It’s a very large gift, one of the largest we’ve ever received.”

 

Greene, who has been affiliated with Milligan for over 50 years, was honored today after receiving a miniature buffalo statue from Greer. Greene also received a standing ovation from the crowd upon finishing his thanks.

 

“I’ve never had anybody stand up for me in my life unless it was at a dinner table,” said Greene. “For that crowd to stand up and honor me, I don’t mind telling you, I teared up.”

 

Greene’s generous donation will set Milligan’s business school up for significant future growth.

 

“I’m proud to have been able to financially give back to a private small school that will potentially impact a lot of lives,” said Greene. “One of the things we will do at Milligan is produce undergraduate and graduate students that understand the ethical qualities of what it means to bee in business with great morality. We raise students and give graduate programs that help Main Street America, not Wall Street.”