Michael And Donna Coles, Kennesaw State, Launch Scholarship Endowment To Support Veterans

Press release from Kennesaw State University:

Mar 2, 2021

Michael and Donna Coles Launch Scholarship Endowment to Support Veterans

KENNESAW, Ga.
(Mar 2, 2021) — Building upon a three-decade-long relationship with Kennesaw State University, Michael
and Donna Coles recently announced a significant gift to establish a scholarship endowment
benefitting veterans of the armed forces.

Michael and Donna Coles

The Michael J. and Donna N. Coles Veterans Scholarship Endowment Fund, made possible
by a $1 million gift to KSU, will help lessen the financial burden of veterans who
have exhausted their GI Bill benefits before the completion of their degrees. Military
veterans have long been a soft spot for the Coles, as Michael was named for his uncle
who died serving his country and Donna’s father served in WWII.

“Through their generosity, Michael and Donna Coles are elevating KSU’s efforts to
support the men and women who bravely serve our country,” KSU President Pamela Whitten
said. “We are incredibly fortunate to have donors like the Coles who are ensuring
that veterans will achieve their educational dreams at KSU.”

The latest gift is just the next chapter in a longstanding relationship between the
Coles family and Kennesaw State University, which began in 1990 when the Great American
Cookie Company founder Michael Coles joined the institution’s board of trustees eager
to help continue its upward trajectory. “Donna and I are so honored to make this gift to KSU,” Michael Coles said. “Military
veterans have always had a special place in our hearts. When I ran for the U.S. Senate
in 1998, I made many friends in the military and was saddened to learn how little
the government does for them. This is our way to honor their sacrifice by offering
some help for a better life.”

In 1994, through their Coles-Novak Family Foundation, the Coles gave KSU its first
seven-figure gift, and the following year Kennesaw State renamed the business school
the Michael J. Coles School of Business, now the College of Business. In 1998, the college awarded Coles with the Beta Gamma Sigma Medallion of Entrepreneurship.
The next year he received an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters and was a 2015 inductee
into the Coles College Hall of Fame. Coles remains a member of the KSU Foundation
Executive Committee.

Throughout the 2018-2019 academic year, the College celebrated “The Year of Michael
J. Coles,” commemorating the 25th anniversary of becoming the Coles College. Since the initial gift from the Coles
in 1994, KSU has seen exponential growth in its business-focused disciplines, including
the successful launch of the Georgia WebMBA and the College’s first doctoral program
in business administration. In that span, the College’s enrollment more than doubled
from 3,075 to 6,869. As of the fall 2020 semester, the College has more than 7,700
students.

Beyond his commitment to KSU, Coles has been heavily involved in the greater community.
He is the former chair of the Georgia Film Commission and Kennesaw State University
Foundation Board, and served on the University System of Georgia Board of Regents
and the Walker School Board in addition to being involved in a wide variety of nonprofit
philanthropic organizations.

– Travis Highfield

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A leader in innovative teaching and learning, Kennesaw State University offers more than 150 undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degrees to its more than 41,000 students. With 11 colleges on two metro Atlanta campuses, Kennesaw State is a member of the University System of Georgia and the second-largest university in the state. The university’s vibrant campus culture, diverse population, strong global ties and entrepreneurial spirit draw students from throughout the region and from 126 countries across the globe. Kennesaw State is a Carnegie-designated doctoral research institution (R2), placing it among an elite group of only 6 percent of U.S. colleges and universities with an R1 or R2 status. For more information, visit kennesaw.edu.

This press release was produced by Kennesaw State University. The views expressed here are the author’s own.