Maryville College to receive largest gift in history

Maryville College recieved its largest donation to date from the estate of Dan McGill, Maryville College Alumni. Photo courtesy of MC Communications.
Maryville College recieved its largest donation to date from the estate of Dan McGill, Maryville College Alumni. Photo courtesy of MC Communications.

Maryville College will soon receive its largest gift in history.

Dan (Class of 1940) and Elaine McGill have worked closely with the College to document their estate gift, and thanks to their spectacular generosity, the College will receive $15 million. This donation will go on record as the largest gift in Maryville College’s 198-year history.

Per their instruction, the gift will be allocated as follows: $1 million will be directed to Anderson Hall – and in their honor, the first floor will now be known as the McGill Family Floor. The remaining $14 million will be designated for endowed scholarships.

The scholarship will carry Dan’s name, in addition to that of their daughter Melanie. The first Dan Mays McGill and Melanie Mays McGill Memorial Scholarships will be awarded during the College’s Bicentennial Year in 2019.

Dan and Elaine originally established this scholarship in memory of their daughter, Melanie Mays McGill, but Elaine requested that the scholarship memorializes her husband’s commitment and serve to Maryville College as well.

Maria Vanegas, a sophomore International Studies major, gave her perspective on the gift. “I think it’s admirable that Dan and Elaine McGill decided to give Maryville College such a generous gift,” said Vanegas. “It will be exciting to see how this donation benefits my classmates and I as we work toward obtaining our degrees.”

Dr. Dan McGill and his wife, Elaine, were long-time supporters and advocates of Maryville College. Mr. McGill graduated magna cum laude from Maryville College in 1940 with a B.A. in Economics. He then went on the receive his Master’s from Vanderbilt University. After serving our country during WWII, he went on to receive his Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania.

Mr. McGill was respected by all who knew him. In addition to chairing the College’s Board of Directors, Dan was honored by the College with an honorary degree in 1982 and the Maryville College medallion in 1994, which is the highest award presented by the College. Awarded since 1990, it recognizes those individuals who have helped immeasurably toward perpetuating the College as a distinctive educational and cultural institution and who have had a profound influence on the future course of Maryville College.

Featured above are Dan McGill and his wife Elaine McGill. Photo courtesy of MC Communications.
Featured above are Dan McGill and his wife Elaine McGill. Photo courtesy of MC Communications.

Dan McGill passed away in 2013; Elaine McGill died last July. “We are truly delighted to honor and celebrate their legacy,” Dr. Bogart said during the presentation, “and look forward to awarding the first Dan Mays McGill and Melanie Mays McGill Memorial Scholarships as part of our Bicentennial Celebration in 2019.”

Speaking on behalf of the current Board of Directors, Dr. Mary Kay Sullivan expressed gratitude for the bequest. “Dr. McGill was deeply involved in the life of the College for seven decades and, as a former chairman of the College’s Board of Directors, understood the power of a transformational gift better than most,” she said. “Maryville College will be a much stronger institution because of this foresight and his and Elaine’s incredible generosity.”

The announcement was followed by a celebration in the William Baxter Lee Foyer of the Clayton Center, where alumni, staff, faculty, board of directors, and students could enjoy cookies, cake, and refreshments.

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