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MILLIGAN COLLEGE, TN (Sept. 25, 2003) – NBA Coach Del Harris was on the Milligan campus today to speak to students, present a clinic for regional basketball coaches, and accept an appreciation gift on behalf of Milligan alumni.
Harris is a 1959 graduate of the college and now serves as defensive coordinator for the Dallas Mavericks NBA team. As the national alumni chair for Milligan’s Campaign for Christian Leadership, Harris accepted a presentation on behalf of the college’s alumni in recognition and appreciation for their record-high giving participation in 2002-03.
During that time, more than 32 percent of Milligan alumni made a financial contribution to the college. This rate was one of the highest alumni giving rates in Milligan’s category in this year’s U.S. News & World Report’s college rankings issue, released late last month (August). The average for that category – “Best Universities-Master’s” – was just 12 percent and the national average for all colleges and universities was just 20 percent. (Note that U.S. News computes and reports the schools’ alumni giving rates as a two year average for the 2000-01 and 2001-02 academic years. Milligan’s two-year average for that time period was 28 percent.)
“This reflects a confidence and pride in the college among our alumni,” said Milligan president Donald R. Jeanes, who explained that the percentage of alumni supporting Milligan has doubled in the past six years.
Alumni director Theresa Garbe attributes this increased confidence to a number of factors.
“Specific factors that we think have contributed include better communication with alumni-particularly via the website and our quarterly magazine, capital improvements to the campus, more cohesive publications that intentionally and unapologetically communicate our mission, and Milligan’s recent obtainment of funding from prestigious organizations such as the Lilly Endowment and the Jesse Ball duPont Fund,” said Garbe, who has been instrumental in grant writing and alumni programming.
Alumni giving is important to the college for several reasons, explained Garbe.
“The more alumni who support the college financially, the better equipped the college is to provide scholarships to students, to make capital improvements and to build the endowment.”
A college’s alumni giving percentage also plays a role in determining a college’s ranking by national organizations, such as U.S. News & World Report, explained Garbe. U.S. News rankings help foundations, such as Lilly and duPont, determine whether or not to fund an institution and its programs. Parents and prospective students also look at the rankings to see how colleges compare to one another.
Another less tangible, but just as important, result of increased alumni giving is “the old-fashioned, ‘rah, rah, rah’ school pride,” explained Garbe. “Increased giving reflects school pride; it also serves to instill school pride. When we talk about our alma mater with confidence and pride, we perpetuate all that is good and unique about our education. We add value to our degree and we encourage others to consider the merits of the institution.”
Garbe said the college is continuously working to improve relationships and communication with alumni to position the college for even greater future success.
By the year 2006, the college’s goal is to reach an annual alumni giving percentage of 40 percent. The college also has a cumulative alumni giving goal of 70 percent during the Campaign for Christian Leadership.
“This means that in the period between fall 2001 and spring 2006, it is our hope that 70 percent of our alumni will have given a gift at least once,” she said.
Jeanes explained that as Milligan moves forward with its $30 million campaign, which has hit the $22 million mark during its second public year, the college has critical needs for increased giving to capital improvements, academic and student programming, and a growing endowment for student scholarships.
“This campaign is positioning Milligan to continue to thrive and provide young men and women with a life-changing Christian liberal arts education,” said Jeanes. “Most importantly, it is helping us fulfill our mission to educate servant-leaders, which our community and world so desperately need.”
In recognition of the record high alumni giving participation levels, Jeanes presented a plaque to Del Harris in appreciation to the alumni for their support of the institution.
During his visit, Harris also spoke to the Milligan student body during the college’s 11 a.m. chapel service, presenting his testimony and encouraging the students in their lifelong process of servant-leadership. Regional coaches also got to hear from Harris, who presented a 4 p.m. coaches clinic in Wilson Auditorium on Milligan’s campus.
Del Harris bio information
Del Harris graduated from Milligan in 1959 with a bachelor’s degree in religion and is now the defensive coordinator for the Dallas Mavericks NBA basketball team. He is also the national alumni chair for Milligan’s Campaign for Christian Leadership.
Before Del Harris was molding millionaires into an interlocking machine, he was a student athlete in the NAIA at Milligan, from 1955-59, as a baseball pitcher and guard on the basketball team. Harris was racking up 36-point games long before the existence of a 3-point line. He earned Honorable Mention All-American Honors under head coach Duard Walker. He went on to earn a master’s degree in history at Indiana University in 1965.
Beginning first as a high school coach on the competitive hardwood of Indiana and then at age 27 proceeding to success as one of the youngest college coaches in the country at Indiana’s Earlham College and Purdue University-Calumet, Harris has always extracted the most out of his teams. He even spent a seven-year stint as head coach in Puerto Rico with three national championships there.
Coach Harris is now one of the most experienced coaches in the NBA, becoming the 20th NBA coach to record over 500 wins. Prior to his work with the Mavericks, Harris led the Houston Rockets to the NBA finals in 1981, took the Milwaukee Bucks to four straight playoff appearances and led the LA Lakers through four very successful years and was named NBA Coach of the Year in 1995.
“Del Harris has seen highs and lows in his 40-year career as a basketball coach. One of the nation’s most successful NBA coaches, he is no stranger to victories on the court, but he has also seen difficult losses, personally and professionally,” said Jeanes. “He has quite a testimony and story to share with others of how God has used his life and given him many second chances. We thank him for his time today and for the message he brings to all of us.