TUSCALOOSA, Ala — Elliott Mitchell and Herbert Clark West Jr. of Santa Rosa Beach, Fla., and Kamuela, Hawaii, have jointly pledged $1 million to The University of Alabama.
Mitchell and West are founders of Southern Shores Properties Inc., a real estate development firm based in northwest Florida. Their gift will be divided between UA’s College of Commerce and Business Administration and College of Arts and Sciences to establish scholarships and support funds, and the Crimson Tradition Fund, a $100 million fundraising campaign for UA athletic facility improvements.
A 1975 graduate of UA with a major in accounting, Mitchell has served as chairman and chief executive officer of Arcade Inc., the world’s largest perfume sampling company. He has also served as a member of the board of directors of the Fragrance Foundation along with the heads of such firms as Revlon, Avon, Estee Lauder, and Calvin Klein. He has held executive positions with Kimberly-Clark Corp., U.S. Homes Corp. and Jim Walter Corp.
A 1977 graduate of UA with a major in speech communication, West was in private practice as a substance abuse counselor before forming Southern Shores Properties Inc. with Mitchell in 1991. He also holds a master’s degree in educational psychology from the University of Tennessee.
The College of Arts and Sciences will receive $400,000 to establish the Herbert Clark West Jr. Support Fund and the Herbert Clark West Jr. Endowed Scholarship in the department of theatre and dance.
“Thanks to the Herbert Clark West Jr. Endowed Support Fund, the department of theatre and dance in the College of Arts and Sciences will embark on an exciting new educational experience for our students. We will open a summer theatre in Orange Beach this year. This theatre will offer a wonderful new arts attraction to the Gulf Coast while giving our theatre and dance students the opportunity to perform in an exciting new venue. The Herbert Clark West Jr. Endowed Scholarship in the department of theatre and dance will also provide much needed financial support to deserving theatre and dance students. We are most grateful to this alumnus for remembering his alma mater so generously,” said Dr. Robert F. Olin, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences.
The College of Commerce and Business Administration will receive $400,000 to be divided equally between the Elliott Mitchell Endowed Support Fund in the Culverhouse School of Accountancy and the Elliott Mitchell C&BA Endowed Scholarship.
“The Mitchell Support Fund will be used to expand student knowledge about governance, ethics, and fraud problems, areas so important to the education of professional accountants with the highest ethical standards. Mr. Mitchell has shown great vision in specifying multiple applications for the fund. It will support research grants, assistantships, and fellowships for faculty and students, data collection, educational materials, and faculty and student educational travel. This will enable us to apply the funds where they will be the most effective. Likewise, the Elliott Mitchell Endowed C&BA Scholarship will meet our most pressing scholarship needs throughout the College,” said Dr. J. Barry Mason, dean of the College of Commerce and Business Administration.
Scholarships in both colleges are specified for freshmen whose enrollment would further diversity in the University’s student body.
West and Clark have specified $200,000 to support the Crimson Tradition Fund. Funds for the campaign are targeted for the renovation of Paul W. Bryant Hall into an academic support center for student athletes and, in conjunction, construction of a residence hall for freshmen and sophomore football players and College of Engineering students; improvements in football training facilities; modernization of Coleman Coliseum; new tennis and soccer complexes; and expansion of the north end zone of Bryant-Denny Stadium. Chaired by Paul Bryant Jr., the Crimson Tradition Fund seeks to raise $50 million from private gifts and another $50 million from the issuance of bonds.
“Elliott Mitchell and Clark West are truly knowledgeable Crimson Tide fans and have offered great support to our building campaign. We realize they live a long way from Tuscaloosa and cannot come to many games, so that makes their support even more special,” said Mal Moore, UA athletics director.
Contact
Rebecca Florence, Director of College Relations, College of Arts and Sciences, 205/348-8663
Elliott Mitchell can be reached at at 808/882-1649 or (cell) 808/895-1284 (9 a.m.-5 p.m. Hawaii Standard Time). Herbert Clark West can be reached in Santa Rosa Beach, Fla., at 850/231-7986 or by e-mail by contacting Rebecca Florence at the phone number above.