Development Board Helps UIW Reach Goals

by Laura Shaw

The Board Executive Committee enjoying the annual Christmas Dinner honoring Associates. Pictured L to R: Bill McClain, Chair, Communications /Outreach; Martha Hopper, Chair Nominations/Recognitions; Dean Lammert, Board Vice Chair; Donna Muslin (seated) Immediate Past Board Chair; Rick Smith, Chair, Swing-In; and Tom Jackson, Board Chairman. (Not pictured: Gary Dudley, Chair, Donor Cultivation.)

"Helping Incarnate Word raise scholarship funds is a way to give back to my alma mater and to invest in the future of today’s students," says Tom Jackson, UIW alumnus and current chairman of the University’s Development Board. A member of the board since 1994, Jackson is a retired U.S. Army colonel who volunteers for a variety of community organizations, but counts his work with the university as his most rewarding.

Jackson and the other 40 board members join with UIW’s Institutional Advancement staff to raise funds that help make up the difference between the tuition students pay and the cost of an Incarnate Word education.

The Development Board also helps keep the university abreast of community needs and interests and, since its founding in the early 1970s, continues to play a significant role in the life of the university and its students.

The Associates program that seeks annual gifts of $1,000 or more from individuals and businesses is a major focus of board efforts each year. Another board project is the annual Swing-In Golf Tournament, an event that includes a day of golfing as well as a tournament auction party. Proceeds from tournament events net $75,000 or more for the University’s Scholarship Fund and for athletics.

The university seeks board members from all walks of life, professionally and socially. Donna Muslin, immediate past chairperson of the Development Board believes that diversity among board members is essential. As Ms. Muslin says, " We count on our board members to bring the university new friends and supporters and expand Incarnate Word connections. That’s why a diverse board is so important."

Many board members maintain a long-term association with the university. Although board members serve a three-year term, many renew their membership for additional terms, sometimes serving for 20 years or more!

Two current board members are recent graduates of UIW’s Adult Degree Completion Program (ADCaP) that is designed for working adults. They are Kate Crosby, a banker, and Roland Trevino, a local restaurateur. In all, 11 board members are UIW alumni. A student representative is selected each year to keep board members up to date on student issues and activities.

In 1998, board officers and staff met to find ways of better focusing the board’s work. After surveying the membership, permanent committees were established and include: Donor Cultivation; Nominations/Recognitions; Swing-In Tournament; Communications/Outreach; and an Executive Committee, comprised of board officers and committee chairs.

Board Vice Chairman Dean Lammert, Senior Vice President for Bank of America, is enthusiastic about the committees, noting that members are getting more involved in their work, working together and getting to know each other better. In fact, the Nominations/Recognitions committee recently recognized Lammert and new member Jay Clingman for their selection as "San Antonio’s Rising Stars-40 Under Forty."

As UIW President Dr. Louis J. Agnese Jr. affirms, "This board is an important liaison in developing close relationships between UIW and the communities of San Antonio and South Texas.