McIlroys Establish Professorship in the Arts

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Hayden McIlroy Jr. (BSBA 1962) and Mary Joe McIlroy of Dallas have committed $1 million to the establishment of an endowed professorship for the benefit of the University of Arkansas J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences and the Walton Arts Center.

The McIlroys’ planned gift, committed during the Campaign for the Twenty-First Century, will be matched by an additional $1 million from the University of Arkansas Matching Gift Program to support the endowed professorship. Over time, the total funding of the McIlroy Family Visiting Professorship in Performing and Visual Arts will be at least $2 million.

Proceeds from the McIlroy Professor endowment will cover the cost of hiring and retaining the holder of the position for a specified term. The program administered by the McIlroy Professor will involve teaching, research, performance/demonstration and community service. The holder of the McIlroy Professorship is to also serve as a catalyst and strengthen the bonds between the Walton Arts Center and the university, which will be a significant benefit to the community.

The McIlroy Professor will be selected jointly by the president of the Walton Arts Center and the dean of Fulbright College. Typically, the McIlroy Professor will serve as a visiting professor for a semester at the university, with the holder’s time culminating in a performance or performances, an exhibition or master class at the Walton Arts Center or the University of Arkansas. During the holder’s time on campus, the visiting artist/scholar will teach classes, lead master classes, and mentor and advise university students. The McIlroy Professor will be skilled in one or more artistic media that may include but not be limited to sculpture, painting, music, acting, theatre production and direction.

Fulbright College Dean Donald Bobbitt said, “The McIlroy family has long been a patron of the arts in our community, and we’re grateful to them for this significant gift to augment the arts in Fulbright College and at the Walton Arts Center.”

Anita Scism, president and chief executive officer of Walton Arts Center, said: “The McIlroy family has given a generous gift that will strengthen the university, Walton Arts Center and the entire region. These artists in residence will offer important opportunities for local artists and students to learn from and interact with some of the best visual and performing artists working in the field. Additionally, local arts patrons will enjoy performances, lectures or exhibitions from these visiting artists, further enhancing the vibrant cultural community we enjoy in Northwest Arkansas. We appreciate the McIlroy family's generosity and their desire to help the university and Walton Arts Center provide Northwest Arkansas with dynamic artistic experiences.”

Hayden McIlroy earned a bachelor of science in business administration from the Sam M. Walton College of Business in 1962. He is the former chairman of McIlroy Bank and Trust in Fayetteville, where he worked for 25 years, and the president of HM Investments in Dallas. He is a life member and a former board member of the Arkansas Alumni Association and a member of Sigma Nu fraternity. Hayden McIlroy helped found the Northwest Arkansas Film Commission and served as the Commission’s chairman. He has served on the Board of Directors for several organizations: the Fayetteville Youth Center, the Arkansas Industrial Development Commission (AIDC), the Arkansas Bankers Commission, the Fayetteville Chamber of Commerce, the State Chamber of Commerce, and the Boy Scouts of America for Northwest Arkansas. He was also a member of the Campaign for the Twenty-First Century Steering Committee.

Mary Joe McIlroy has always been interested in the performing arts and is a member of TACA, a Dallas group that works to increase public awareness and participation in the performing arts. She attended Centenary College and is a member of the Dallas Women’s Club, Crystal Charity, and the Dallas Civic Opera, and has served on the Board of Directors for the Arkansas Repertory Theatre, the Northwest Arkansas Symphony, and the Dallas Symphony. She was also on the Board of Directors for Equest, an organization that provides therapeutic horseback riding lessons for individuals with physical, mental, and emotional disabilities. While living in Fayetteville, she was a Board member of The New School, helping to expand the school’s facilities, and was instrumental in starting the city’s first Autumn Fest. Mary Joe McIlroy has also worked with the Salvation Army.

The McIlroy family has had a continuing relationship with the University of Arkansas and City of Fayetteville for 134 years.  Hayden McIlroy said, “The arts have always been important to us as a family.  Mary Joe has been especially active over the years in helping to establish and maintain cultural projects so the McIlroy Professorship was a perfect endowment for us to consider.  Hopefully, it will strengthen the bond between the city and university by providing a benefit to students and citizens alike. As a graduate of Arkansas, and longtime residents of Fayetteville, we feel fortunate to be a part of the unbelievably successful Campaign for the 21^st Century.  It was a history-making achievement. Thank you to everyone that contributed and worked so hard for the benefit of those that follow.”

This gift was committed during the Campaign for the Twenty-First Century, which recorded $1.046 billion in gifts and pledges designated toward student and faculty endowments, academic programs, capital improvements and University Libraries when it concluded June 30, 2005.