by Talk Business and Politics (staff@talkbusiness.net)
The University of Arkansas at Fort Smith has received an $18.77 million gift from the Windgate Foundation to expand the university’s nursing and arts programs. The gift is the single largest in the university’s 94-year history.
A Friday (Sept. 9) UAFS press release noted that the money will “dramatically increase nursing graduates and cultivating an immersive arts experience for students and the public through the expansion of the Windgate Art and Design building and its offerings.”
Prior to this gift, the Windgate Foundation awarded more than $25 Million to UAFS in support of the Windgate Art and Design building and endowment, visual arts and design programming, and a comprehensive scholarship endowment for high-need students. Over the past three years, Rickman said, the university and the Windgate Foundation pivoted from discussing a single gift to improve fine art facilities at UAFS to designing the multi-tiered plan to holistically advance the health and wellness of the Fort Smith metro.
Windgate Art & Design Building on the University of Arkansas at Fort Smith campus