Augusta, Ga. – The Knox School of Accountancy in the James M. Hull College of Business was dedicated Tuesday, January 13, at Augusta State University in a 4 p.m. ceremony in Allgood Hall. Taking part in the ceremony was Dr. Marc Miller, dean of the Hull College, ASU President William A. Bloodworth, Jr., Mr. Charlie Anderson, chairman of the ASU Foundation, Mr. Jim Hull, for whom the Hull College is named, and Mr. Boone Knox, chairman of the Knox Foundation.

The Knox School of Accountancy was approved and established in September following a unanimous recommendation of the faculty. The request followed a major gift from the Knox Foundation of $2 million to advance the accountancy program in the Hull College and to establish an endowed chair in accounting. The Knox Foundation unanimously voted to honor the late Peter Knox III with the endowed chair; the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia, at their November meeting, approved the establishment of the Peter S. Knox III Distinguished Chair of Accounting.

“We are grateful to the Knox Foundation and the Knox family for such a generous gift, which will lend support to an already great faculty in the School of Accountancy and help us become one the nation’s premier accounting schools,” says Dr. Miller, adding, “We are very honored to bear the name of the Knox Family, and we thank them for lending their name to ours in our quest for excellence. I can promise that we will live up to the ideals and honor that signify the Knox name.”

Mr. Peter Knox directed the growth of an Augusta-based brick company into one of the largest real estate investment trusts in the country. He became president of Merry Brick Company in 1974 and led the company until it became one of the nation’s largest brick manufacturers. In 1981, Australia-based Boral Ltd. acquired an 80 percent stake in the company, leaving ownership of the clay lands to Mr. Knox and other Merry Brick Company shareholders. As a result, a new venture was established, Merry Land & Investment Company, which bought and managed apartment complexes throughout the Southeast. At the time of Mr. Knox’s death in 1996, Merry Land & Investment Company had assets exceeding $1 billion.

“I am proud and humbled that our school will bear his name for eternity and strive to exemplify the ideals and principles that he showed in his daily life not only as a businessman, but as a person of integrity, honor, and dignity,” says Dr. Miller.

“By all accounts, Mr. Knox had an extremely keen intellect and incredibly strong analytical and decision making skills, coupled with an extraordinary sense of ethics and social responsibility. These are all of the traits that we strive diligently to instill in the graduates of our accounting program. It is a fitting tribute that his memory will be embodied in the thousands of people who receive a business education from the Knox School of Accountancy,” he added.

President Bloodworth added his appreciation. “I want to thank the Knox  Foundation for its generous support of the Hull College. The Knox generosity will benefit the entire community as our accounting graduates take their places in local and national businesses,” says President Bloodworth. “I’m especially pleased that Jim Hull and Boone Knox understand how powerful an effect they can have by assisting our students.  The Hull College and the Knox School of Accountancy are major steps forward for Augusta State University and the greater Augusta community.”

Already the James M. Hull College of Business is ranked among the top business schools in the nation by the prestigious Princeton Review—and it holds distinguished accreditation from the AACSB—Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, one of only 473  in the world. Mr. Joey Styron, associate professor of accounting, has been named director of the Knox School of Accountancy. Other accounting faculty members include Dr. Pam Jackson, Dr. Jeff Miller, Mr. Robert Smalley, and Ms. B. J. Blackwood.

The Peter S. Knox III Distinguished Chair of Accounting will be awarded to a distinguished scholar in the accounting field who provides service to the Knox School of Accountancy through teaching, research, and service to the community. In addition to providing the highest quality teaching to both graduate and undergraduate students, the chair holder will establish and nurture relationships with the professional accounting community in order to ensure that the curriculum remains on the forefront of the accounting discipline.

For more information, contact Kathy Schofe, director of public relations, in ASU’s Office of Public Relations and Publications at 706-737-1878.
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