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  CHILD CARE CENTER AT USF SARASOTA-MANATEE CAMPUS CROSLEY CENTER NAMED FOR FOUNDER OF BRUCE WILLIAMS HOMES

(Sarasota, FL, April 27, 2005) – The University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee received a $100,000 gift from Bruce Williams Homes for the Crosley Campus Center opening fall 2006. The Lloyd Williams Child Care Center will honor the late founder of what has become the largest locally based homebuilder and developer in Manatee County.

All funds raised for Crosley Campus Center are matched 100 percent under the Alec P. Courtelis Facilities Enhancement Challenge grant from the Florida Division of Colleges and Universities, bringing the Williams gift value to $200,000. Since December 2004, more than 40 businesses, foundations, faculty, staff, alumni, and other individuals have come forward with over $2.1 million in private gifts and grants for the Initiative. The Courtelis match raises the current total funds for enhancement of the new facility to more than $4.2 million. The USF Foundation, a direct support organization of the university, manages endowed gifts and provides ongoing funds through investment earnings.

“The USF Sarasota-Manatee Crosley Campus Center with its state-of-the-art technology and programs will provide educational building blocks for future generations,” said Britton H. Williams, CEO and president of Bruce Williams Homes. “Bruce Williams Homes builds communities, not just homes, and a strong community needs a top-tier university. The Lloyd Williams Child Care Center will open doors for working parents pursuing quality higher education and career opportunities.”

Lloyd Williams Jr. co-founded Bruce Williams Homes Inc. in 1969 and was the visionary behind local communities such as Greenfield, Plantation, Lexington, and Crosscreek. Williams died in 2004, but his legacy of integrity, attention to detail and commitment to customer service, as well as his philanthropic interests continue through his wife Eileen, and sons Reace, Britton and Marshall. Bruce Williams Homes has developed over 1,000 lots in 10 communities in Pinellas and Manatee counties.

The Crosley Campus Center will be a 100,000-square-foot facility with 24 classrooms; a 190-seat lecture/exhibition hall; seminar and video-conferencing rooms; computer labs; a child care center; student gathering places; faculty and staff offices; a technology and learning center; dining facilities; and training facilities for the School of Hotel and Restaurant Management. Once completed, the Center will offer some 800 courses annually in 37 academic programs.

USF Sarasota-Manatee is an upper-level campus for those with an associate’s or bachelor’s degree interested in pursuing a baccalaureate or master’s degree, professional certification, or continuing education credit. The campus offers the prestige of a national Research 1 university with the convenience of a hometown campus, including classes in south Sarasota County at Manatee Community College Venice.
 
 
     
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