Norton Center home About the Norton Center Message from the President Message from the Director of Athletics Message from the Alumni Board President Meet Ferrum Athletes About Hank Norton Norton Center Renderings How to Give Get Involved Campaign Progress Athletics Homepage Development Homepage Ferrum Homepage

Dear Ferrum Friends and Alumni:

At Ferrum College, we are proud of our access, affordability, diversity and opportunity and our keen focus on ensuring the value of a Ferrum education. As today’s future college students consider their many higher education choices, they seek the finest education in a place with outstanding facilities. It is clearly evident through our growth that more and more of these young men and women are choosing Ferrum! While our enrollment continues its upward trajectory, many of our peer institutions have seen a decline. We all compete for scarce financial resources from foundations, alumni and friends who seek the organizations that represent the best stewardship of their precious resources. We find success in that competition because of your generosity and the fact that Ferrum has proven to be a wise investment.

As we enter this new year, our number one building priority is the proposed Hank Norton Center, a facility that will greatly enhance recruitment and retention and propel Ferrum well ahead of its peer institutions. In addition to being the home of the entire outdoor athletic program, the Hank Norton Center will serve all students through classroom space, fitness areas and state of the art sports medicine and athletic training facilities. Award-winning athletic programs have long been a Ferrum hallmark – they become even more important when we look at how these programs bolster our number one key performance indicator, student success.

• » Approximately 30% of our students participate in athletics, and many more are drawn to Ferrum with the intention of playing sports. Our athletic programs are a significant enrollment driver. The strength of these programs helps set Ferrum apart from our competitors. The addition of the Hank Norton Center will further distinguish Ferrum from other schools.


• » Student athletes are our best retaining student population. Students engaged in athletics at Ferrum retain at a rate of up to twenty percentage points higher than non athletes. This figure is especially important among female students. Nearly 95% of women who play sports will graduate. That phenomenal statistic underscores the fact that when students are engaged in co-curricular activities they are most likely to experience a high degree of success toward graduation.

We have been intentional and strategic in our growth over the past five years through the construction of new residence halls and renovation of existing facilities. We have improved our focus on academics and student life through expanding the library, refurbishing classrooms, improving technology and dramatically enhancing our student center. It is now time to continue that extraordinarily successful momentum by building the Hank Norton Center. To accomplish this, we need the help of every alumnus and friend of Ferrum. Your gift to the Norton Center will provide a significant boost to our recruitment and retention programs and further differentiate Ferrum from our peer colleges with whom we compete for students. Please become a part of this tremendous opportunity to help ensure the success of young men and women for generations to come.

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