UNA ranked 57 on the Chronicle of Higher Education’s list for recent private gifts to higher education for the month of May because of Joe McKinney and Chester McKinney Jr’s $1,000,000 donation.

UNA tied with 15 other universities. A total of 71 universities made the Chronicle of Higher Education’s list. The list only included gifts of $1,000,000 or more.

The McKinneys donated the money to the Human Environmental Sciences Department in honor of their late mother and UNA alumnae, Connie D. McKinney, said Director of University Communications Bryan Rachal in a press release.

UNA vice president of University Advancement Deborah Shaw said she is proud of making the Chronicle of Higher Education’s list.

“We’re lucky to have such wonderful donors who understand how transformative their gifts are to our institution,” Shaw said. “What made their gift so unique, and others on the list, was that it was an outright gift, not paid in several years over installments, which is typical and expected for most large gifts.”

On top of their $1,000,000 donation, the McKinney’s offered to match additional gifts toward the HES Department.

In honor of the McKinney’s donation, the UNA board of trustees approved the name change of the HES Department to the Connie D. McKinney Department of Human Sciences, Hospitality and Design Feb 2.