FLORENCE, AL - The Anderson Family has announced a $3.2 million gift to the University of North Alabama that will provide for graduate and undergraduate scholarships for students enrolled in the Anderson College of Nursing and Health Professions.

Charles Anderson made the announcement Monday as part of the ribbon cutting ceremony for the Anderson College of Nursing and Health Professions in the newly opened Laura M. Harrison Hall.

"We've been considering another gift for a while," Charles Anderson said. "We thought about the fact that (Hilda Anderson) always wanted to help everyone and wanted everybody to have an equal opportunity, and we thought maybe that means a scholarship. Today, we want to announce we are going to make a new gift to the Anderson College of Nursing in the amount of a $3.2 million endowment to provide both graduate and undergraduate nursing scholarships."

Hilda Anderson is Charles' late wife; she passed in March of 2020. In addition to the naming of the Anderson College of Nursing and Health Professions, the UNA Women's Softball Team plays at the Hilda B. Anderson Softball Stadium.

"This is a meaningful and significant gift from the Anderson Family, and it will change the lives of the students who benefit from it," said UNA President Dr. Ken Kitts. "The family's history of giving to UNA, which is the alma mater for many of them, is indicative of their heart for service and serving the needs of the University as well as the broader community."

Vicki Pierce, Dean of the Anderson College of Nursing and Health Professions, said the gift of student scholarships will allow for the growth the new building can now accommodate.

"The Anderson Family has been so very generous with the College, and we are so grateful," she said. "Many of the opportunities we offer to students are because of them. This gift will help a number of our students achieve their goals of working in healthcare. Health providers are in demand now more than ever, and this will go a long way toward us, in the Anderson College of Nursing and Health Professions, helping meet those demands."

About The University of North Alabama

The University of North Alabama is an accredited, comprehensive regional state university offering undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral degree programs through the colleges of Arts and Sciences, Business, Education and Human Sciences, and the Anderson College of Nursing and Health Professions. Occupying a 130-acre campus in a residential section of Florence, Alabama, UNA is located within a four-city area that also includes Muscle Shoals, Sheffield, and Tuscumbia. UNA Athletics, a renowned collegiate athletics program with seven (7) Division II National Championships, is now a proud member of the NCAA Division I's ASUN Big South Conference. The University of North Alabama is an equal opportunity institution and does not discriminate in the admission policy on the basis of race, color, sex, religion, disability, age, or national origin. For more: www.una.edu and www.una.edu/unaworks/