News > October 13, 2005

By Meg Henry

Assistant News Editor

A $5 million dollar donation has been pledged to the university by Doug Manchester and his wife, Elizabeth. 

The majority of the gift has been earmarked to benefit undergraduate faculty.

Doug Manchester currently serves on the university’s board of trustees and is the founder and chairman of the Manchester Financial Group, a San Diego hotel and commercial property developer. 

The Manchesters hail from La Jolla, California, and are the parents of a current university student as well as a 2003 graduate.

In appreciation of the Manchesters’ gift, the university will rename West Hall as well as the Magnolia Court in their honor.

West Hall will be formally dedicated as Manchester Hall on Oct. 21.  The Magnolia Court will be called the Manchester Plaza.

Eighty percent of the Manchesters’ gift will go to unrestricted support of the undergraduate faculty, according to Mr. Manchester.

The other fifth of the donation will go toward the golf program.

“With this gift, we wish to demonstrate our support of a faculty dedicated to the development of Wake Forest students and preparing them for their future lives,” Doug Manchester said in a statement.

It is unclear at this time specifically how the 80 percent or $4.2 million will be put to use to benefit faculty.

“At this point, all details regarding how this gift will be used have not been settled ... 80 percent goes toward unrestricted support of the College Faculty.  It clearly will be directed toward the needs of undergraduate faculty,” said Kevin Cox, assistant vice president and director of media relations.David Weinstein, associate professor of political science and president of the American Association of University Professors at the university is appreciative of the Manchesters’ donation.

“The AAUP thinks this is a wonderful, generous thing that the Manchesters have done. We hope other devoted alumni follow their much appreciated example,” Weinstein said.

University president Nathan O. Hatch said that the donation will be used to reward faculty who are crucial to the school’s academic environment.

“Wake Forest depends on its faculty, its teacher-scholars, to continue developing as a premier liberal arts university.  Proper funding of faculty needs is an important goal at Wake Forest,” Hatch said in a statement.

This is not the Manchesters’ first significant gift to the university. 

The Manchester Athletic Center was named in their honor in August of 2002 after they made a gift of one million dollars.

“Betsey and I are grateful for the excellent education and opportunities that our children have found as Wake Forest students,” Doug Manchester said in a statement.

“Throughout their years at Wake Forest, they found outstanding faculty who have demonstrated a genuine commitment to their development as college students,” he continued.

This donation is the largest ever made by parents of a current undergraduate student.

Editor in chief Jessica Pritchard contributed to this article.