University of Tennessee Athletics
Cleveland Couple Pledges $5 Million to UT
April 15, 2000 | General
Toby and Brenda McKenzie of Cleveland are giving $4 million toward the $8 to $10 million expansion of the Vols' Neyland-Thompson Sports Complex on Lake Loudon Boulevard. The McKenzies also pledged an additional $1 million to UT scholarship and academic programs.
The practice field will be a full 120 yards and administrative office space will be added, Athletic Director Doug said. A Lindsey Nelson Memorial Room honoring the sports broadcaster and UT graduate will be included in the expansion, along with an All-Sports Hall of Fame area.
The couple recently gave $2.1 million to UT-Chattanooga to retire the debt on the school's arena. Their total gifts and pledges to UT are nearly $8.5 million.
Half of the $1 million for academics will go to the Toby and Brenda McKenzie Endowment for recruiting top faculty to UT. The other $500,000 will be split between the Lilly Frank Fitzgerald Scholarship program and the UT Alliance for Women in Philanthropy of which Brenda McKenzie is a founding member.
"This is a good example of athletics benefiting the academic side of the university," Gilley said. "In addition to this wonderful gift to athletics, students and faculty will benefit from the McKenzies' generosity."
The Fitzgerald scholarships honor Toby McKenzie's high school English teacher. The couple also supports the McKenzie Scholarship Program and the Joe and Rachel DeCosimo Scholarships at UTC and business administration scholarship in Knoxville.
Dickey said he hopes construction can begin on the Neyland-Thompson facility in 2001.
