Published April 29, 2015
Today, University of Louisiana of Monroe administrators, faculty, staff, and students,
gathered to celebrate alumnus David Turrentine and his wife Sharon, who donated $60,000
to the ULM Foundation to establish the David and Sharon Turrentine Endowed Professorship
for the ULM College of Business and Social Sciences.
The Endowed Professorship is a distinction awarded by the university to a faculty
member in recognition of superior accomplishments in teaching and/or scholarship in
the individual's academic discipline. In addition to the academic honor given to the
individual, an endowed professorship provides funding for support of his or her teaching,
research, and service responsibilities.
“What we’re doing today is receiving an investment that goes to our faculty,” said
Dr. Ronald Berry, dean of the College of Business and Social Sciences. “Times are
tough in Louisiana, but our faculty continue to do more and more with smiles on their
faces, and they change the lives of our students forever, which is truly remarkable.”
Endowed Professorships help recruit superior new faculty and help retain current faculty
whose research, teaching, and/or public service have uniquely contributed to the missions
of their departments and institutions. A major purpose of the Endowed Professorships
program is to create stronger economic development ties between the private sector
and higher education.
Two years ago ULM President Dr. Nick J. Bruno spoke with the Turrentines about his
hope to raise $54 million during the university’s first major comprehensive campaign,
and they were interested in helping the university achieve that goal.
Turrentine (right) with Bruno (left) and Berry (center)
“ULM has successful alumni all over the globe, and they are coming back to share their
success with the university and to preserve the university during its ongoing growth,”
said Bruno.
David Turrentine earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Marketing from ULM in 1967.
Turrentine currently serves as Chairman of the Board and Secretary of Standard Enterprises,
Inc. — a construction, development, management, and real estate company located in
Monroe.
Standard Enterprises and its officers have built over 6,000 multi-family apartment
units, 7,000 single-family homes, and numerous commercial buildings, in addition to
performing millions of dollars of renovation work on thousands of apartments units.
“It’s a thrill to be able to come back and do something for the university now that
I’ve had a successful career,” said Turrentine.
Turrentine spoke about the professors who helped him throughout his college career,
which he joked, took 10 semesters and three summer sessions.
“I left with a heck of an education, and I had some of the greatest professors that
you could think of. They meant so much to me, and I learned so much,” he said. “What
makes this university great are the professors; the people who teach us how to make
things happen and change our lives. I want to help the professors who are already
here and make sure we keep them, and I also want to help attract additional professors
of the highest quality for the students, for the community, and for this university,
and that’s why I’m here today.”
An Endowed Professorship is established by pairing a 60 percent private-sector gift
with a 40 percent Board of Regents award through a permanent trust fund—the Louisiana
Education Quality Support Fund. The minimum private investment required to establish
an Endowed Professorship is $60,000. This gift is then eligible to receive the Board
of Regent’s $40,000 match, creating a $100,000 Endowed Professorship.
