KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) – The Haslam family has now donated over $100 million to the University of Tennessee-Knoxville after their latest donation of $40 million to the college of business that bears their name

School officials announced Tuesday that Natalie and James A. Haslam, Dee and Jimmy Haslam, and Crissy and Bill Haslam made a $40 million gift to the Haslam College of Business. This investment follows a landmark gift in 2014 that established the business school as UT’s first named college and increases the Haslam family’s total giving to business to more than $100 million.

According to a release, the gift will support the following initiatives:

• Hiring of preeminent faculty
• Enhanced faculty research through additional named professorships and summer support
• Programmatic initiatives to increase diversity in the college’s student body
• Expansion of undergraduate honors programming
• Increase graduate student fellowships

“The Haslam College of Business is 100 years strong, and this transformative gift will continue to positively impact every aspect of its highly regarded business programs,” said UT Chancellor Donde Plowman. “This gift will accelerate the positive trajectory of the college, whose nationally and internationally ranked business continue to attract the best and the brightest to study, teach, and lead at UT. Students and faculty in the Haslam College of Business are shaping the future of business and changing the world for the better.”

The Haslam family’s gift also allows the college to pursue additional donations through matching, by which other philanthropists can see their donations doubled in impact.

“The University of Tennessee is a tremendous, world-class institution that continues to grow and advance to better serve its students and the community,” the Haslam family said in a statement. “We are grateful for the opportunity to continue our commitment to the university through the Haslam College of Business and hope this gift will enrich the lives of students for generations to come. By investing in these students, we are building the future leaders, entrepreneurs and philanthropists of our community, state and country.

“We believe in the power of education to change the course of individual lives and the future of our communities through innovation, business endeavors and job creation, and most importantly, leadership development. This is a legacy our family is honored to help build. We hope our gift will encourage others to support UT and our youth, who will help shape the future successes of Knoxville and beyond.”