First phase of University's Millington Center open for business
Share the new vision for the Alumni Association at August forum
U of M to take part in Southern Festival of Books
Follow the Tigers with new Tiger Trek Series
True Blue fun planned for Homecoming 2004
Upcoming Events

First phase of University's Millington Center open for business

The University of Memphis and the City of Millington will host a joint celebration on Thursday, Sept. 16 to officially open Phase I of the University's Millington Center. The festivities will start at noon at Willis Hall behind the former hospital at Naval Support Activity Mid-South in Millington.

Since acquiring the 38-acre property in December 2002, the University has focused on renovating Willis Hall, which houses 12,000 square feet of classroom space and computer labs. Phase II, which includes renovation of 40,000 square feet of the main floor of the old Navy hospital, will open at a later date.

This initial opening is possible due to the tremendous support of the U. S. Department of Education, Congressman John Tanner, the University of Memphis Foundation, the Millington community and Patriot Bank. Classes began at Willis Hall in mid-May with 152 students enrolled for the first summer term and 147 in the second term. When all phases are complete, we will teach more than 650 students in Willis Hall and 4,000 at the Millington Center.

Please join us in celebrating this historical event in the life of the University of Memphis, the city of Millington and the surrounding region. For more information, please call 901/678-2307.

Come preview new club and chapter logos, banners, membership cards and much more at the second Alumni Association Vision Forum on Saturday, Aug. 21. If you haven't already let us know you're coming, please call 901/678-5314 or e-mail alumnievents@memphis.edu by Tuesday, Aug. 17.

The day's schedule will begin at 8:30 a.m. with breakfast and fellowship followed by club and chapter "State of the Association" addresses. The Alumni Association general business meeting and voting will be followed by lunch. The afternoon will involve training on the new Alumni Association bylaws.

Come for part or all of the day. Parking will be provided in the Fogelman Executive Center Garage.

The University of Memphis is proud to sponsor the 2004 Southern Festival of Books: A Celebration of the Written Word. The annual festival, which is usually held in Nashville, will take place Oct. 8-10 at Cook Convention Center and Main Street Mall in downtown Memphis.

The U of M will host a booth at the festival and also hold events on campus the week before. Details will be available in an upcoming issue of the e-newsletter.

The event features more than 200 authors, 70 exhibitors, three performance stages and special events for children. Among the authors confirmed to appear are Robert Olen Butler, Janell Cannon, Andrei Codrescu, Debra Dickerson, Clyde Edgerton, James Ellroy, Horton Foote, Kaye Gibbons, Travis Hunter, Cassandra King, Alan Lightman, Brent Lott, Jill McCorkle, Ridley Pearson, Arthur Phillips, Adriana Trigiani, Elijah Wald and Paul Zelinsky.

More information about the festival is available on the Humanities Tennessee Web site at http://www.tn-humanities.org/sfbmain.htm.

This fall the Alumni Association is excited to introduce a new travel program for away football games - the Tiger Trek Series. We will offer a travel package for every single away game this season, which will include travel, the option to purchase tickets, munchies and lots of True Blue fun!

The first two treks will take us to Ole Miss and Arkansas State, and details on pricing and reservations are available online at http://www.memphis.edu/alumni/tigertrek.html. We hope you'll join your fellow Tiger fans on our Tiger Treks!

Homecoming may be over a month away, but a slew of activities has already been planned to make this year's the best ever. In addition to the football game against Houston at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 2, some highlights include:

• Half Century Club "Golden Reunion" for graduates of 50 or more years
• Alumni Clubs and Chapters meet and greet
• Homecoming parade on campus
• Pep rally
• Homecoming picnic

For details of these and other Homecoming events, please visit http://www.memphis.edu/alumni/homecoming.html. We hope to see you there!

The Nashville alumni club is hosting an organizational meeting on Thursday, Aug. 26 at B.B. King's Blues Club and Restaurant at 6 p.m.

The Jackson, Tenn., alumni club is hosting an organizational meeting on Tuesday, Aug. 31 at the Jackson Country Club at 6 p.m.

The Alumni Association is forming a club in the Chicago area! All Chicago Alumni are invited to attend an organizational meeting on Thursday, Sept. 2 at Goose Island Brew Pub at 6 p.m.

On Sept. 14, UMAR will hold a "Coffee and Conversations" program featuring Dr. Stan Hyland. He will lead a discussion on the School of Urban Affairs & Public Policy and its positive impact on our community.

The College of Arts and Sciences Alumni Chapter's annual awards dinner, recognizing Mark Luttrell Jr., Pat Lawler and Dr. Charles McNutt, will be held Thursday, Sept. 23 at the Racquet Club of Memphis. For additional information or to purchase tickets, please contact us at alumnievents@memphis.edu or 901/678-5314.

The 12th Annual Fogelman College of Business and Economics Alumni Day Luncheon featuring speaker R. Brad Martin and award recipients T. Michael Glenn and Stevan Porter will be held Wednesday, Sept. 22. For details or to purchase tickets, please contact us at alumnievents@memphis.edu or 901/678-5314.

The Birmingham alumni club is planning a tailgate before the Memphis-UAB football game on Sept. 25.

If you are interested in becoming a member of the Theatre and Dance alumni club please contact Josie Helming at jhelming@memphis.edu or 678-5514 or Alice Berry at aeberry@memphis.edu or call 678-3184.

For information on any of these events, please contact the Alumni Office at alumnievents@memphis.edu or 901/678-5314.