The new fund will support student travel, competitions, presentations, and other enrichment opportunities that bring classroom learning to life for students in the School of Business and the Department of Construction Management and Civil and Construction Engineering.

Murray, a 2003 graduate of 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock鈥檚 business management program, said the fund was inspired by his desire to give back to the university that helped shape his entrepreneurial journey.

鈥淚 know not everyone at 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock has access to the same resources or opportunities as students at larger schools,鈥� Murray said. 鈥淭hese kinds of real-world experiences鈥攖raveling, competing, and presenting鈥攈elp students gain confidence and professional skills that are incredibly valuable in business and construction. This is a way for me to invest in their future and in our local workforce.鈥�

Founded in 2010, Murray Contractors has worked on several projects at 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock, including renovations in the Reynolds Business Building, the demolition of the former Education Building, and pedestrian bridge replacement in front of the Engineering Technology and Applied Sciences Building. But Murray said this gift offered a more personal opportunity to support the university community.

鈥淭his campus has meant a lot to me over the years, and contributing to the student experience helps strengthen our whole community,鈥� he said. 鈥淚f we don鈥檛 support our future business leaders as they graduate from our own local institutions, then who will?鈥�

The fund recently supported a student team that competed in the Harold E. Eisenberg Foundation鈥檚 Annual Real Estate Challenge in Chicago in April. Murray attended a presentation by the students and said he was blown away by their professionalism and preparation.

鈥淭hey didn鈥檛 present like students. They presented like business professionals,鈥� Murray said. 鈥淚 was incredibly impressed by their speaking skills, their visuals, and their command of the project. Watching that made me proud to be part of this effort.鈥�

Elizabeth Small, instructor of real estate development, said Murray鈥檚 support and presence at the student presentation added meaningful validation to their work.

鈥淧atrick Murray鈥檚 contribution to the student experience was much appreciated,鈥� Small said. 鈥淗e understands the real estate development process and how important construction is to owners. This is the basis of the student competition, and it was fun to have Mr. Murray in the room to hear the student presentation, make comments, and converse with the team. He confirmed that their work is 鈥榬eal world.鈥欌��

Murray hopes the fund will open doors for students to gain experiences he didn鈥檛 have himself as a student.

鈥淚 didn鈥檛 get to do things like this when I was in college,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 was focused on racing motocross and school. But seeing these students take the initiative to go above and beyond is inspiring. Those are the people I want to work with one day.鈥�

He credits the encouragement and leadership of Christian O鈥橬eal, vice chancellor for university advancement, as one of the driving forces behind his decision to create the fund.

鈥淐hristian鈥檚 energy and commitment to this campus are contagious,鈥� Murray said. 鈥淗is passion for growing this university made me want to be part of that effort.鈥�

Through this gift, Murray hopes to foster both educational excellence and a strong talent pipeline for central Arkansas.

鈥淏eing able to contribute to 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock helps contribute to our own community,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not just about giving back. It鈥檚 about investing in the people who will help build the future of this city.鈥�

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For the second year in a row, Rainwater, owner of r in the Promenade at Chenal, is donating his time and skills to provide custom business outfits for a team of 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock students competing in the Harold E. Eisenberg Foundation鈥檚 Annual Real Estate Challenge in April.

The competition, held in Chicago, challenges students to develop a real estate proposal for a designated site. 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock鈥檚 team has a strong track record, winning the competition two years ago and securing second place last year. This year鈥檚 project focuses on a 10-acre site in the Bronzeville area of Chicago, previously home to a hospital.

Rainwater, who has been in the clothing business for more than 50 years, is outfitting the team with custom black suits and white shirts.

鈥淎 crisp black suit and white shirt is so clean and classic, and they can use it for other events in the future,鈥� Rainwater said. 鈥淚f you look good, you play good. I truly believe that.鈥�

Senior construction management major Jacob Ivy is excited about both the competition and his new suit.

鈥淚鈥檝e always had trouble with clothes fitting, so it鈥檚 nice to get a measured suit,鈥� Ivy said. 鈥淚鈥檓 about to graduate and start a new job at Baldwin & Shell, so I鈥檓 sure I鈥檒l be using the suit for many years to come.鈥�

Warren Hoyt, a senior finance major, Donaghey Scholar, and member of the Little Rock Wrestling team, echoed the excitement.

鈥淚t鈥檚 pretty cool to get a new suit. It will be great to have for my career and work,鈥� Hoyt said. 鈥淩eid and I are roommates, and we are both excited to get custom suits because we鈥檙e on the job market this year. I am especially excited about attending a job fair before the competition鈥�

Hoyt鈥檚 roommate and fellow team member Reid Nelson, also a senior finance major, said the competition has been a learning experience.

鈥淚鈥檝e never done anything like it before,鈥� Nelson said. 鈥淚 have no experience in real estate previously, and I am meeting a lot of new people and gaining a lot of new experience. Getting a new suit is awesome. I only have one other suit from my senior year of high school, so this is great.鈥�

Adison Cummings, a senior double major in architectural and civil engineering, is the only returning team member from previous competitions.

鈥淚t鈥檚 weird being the only person on the team who鈥檚 done it before, but it鈥檚 exciting to experience it with a brand-new team and fresh sets of eyes,鈥� Cummings said. 鈥淚 really made good use of the suit I got last year, and I think the all-black outfit will be nice for job interviews, weddings, and any type of outings where a nice outfit is required.鈥�

Rainwater said he is honored to support the students in this way.

鈥淚t makes me feel like I鈥檓 a part of community efforts, and it鈥檚 a skill that I can help others with,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 am just appreciative of being a part of the team and the school.鈥�

The 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock team will compete in Chicago on April 5-6, bringing fresh ideas and strong preparation to the challenge along with a sharp new look to match.

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糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock came in second during the Undergraduate Division of the , which matches teams from selected universities in a competition that normally focuses on a high-profile development/redevelopment project in the Chicago Metropolitan area.

The award-winning students were led by Elizabeth Small, director of business networks and instructor of real estate development. The team included Osman Bagandov, a recent finance graduate, Adison Cummings, a junior architectural and civil engineering major, Ashlin Graveline, a recent finance-real estate graduate, and Lamar Townsend, who just graduated with bachelor鈥檚 degrees in political science and finance-real estate.

鈥淭he students were dynamic, exciting, and well prepared,鈥� Small said. 鈥淭hey had a lot of confidence going into the competition, which was refreshing and reassuring. I am so proud of this team for all their hard work, research, and innovation.鈥�

This is the first year that the competition focused on a non-Chicago project, instead choosing a development project from St. Louis. This twist provided an interesting dynamic for the students, who had the opportunity to travel to St. Louis to view the site before the competition. In previous years, the team had to rely on photos and virtual tours and weren鈥檛 able to visit the site in person before traveling to Chicago for the competition.

The team made their presentation to the Eisenberg Foundation on April 14, with the four students sporting matching business outfits provided by Paul Rainwater, owner of in the Promenade at Chenal. He donated his time and skills to create the custom outfits so the team would be dressed for success as they defended their title. 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock took first place in the competition in 2023 and won a $5,000 scholarship for their efforts.

鈥淚n the judges鈥� comments, one judge even stated that we were the best dressed team at the competition,鈥� Small said.

糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock faced some tough teams in the high-profile competition, including Auburn University, Illinois Institute of Technology, Ohio State, Michigan State, Rutgers, University of Notre Dame, Marquette University, Purdue, and Tulane.

There were so many teams competing this year that Eisenberg split the Undergraduate Division into two different tracks, and the winners of the two tracks competed head on to determine the winner. 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock won their track, but eventually lost to Tulane University in the final round, who took home the title and a $7,500 scholarship.

鈥淚 love this competition,鈥� said Cummings, who is the only non-business student on the team. 鈥淚 love the real-world concept behind the competition and getting to go through the process of development, seeing the site, and then creating what we envision for it.鈥�

Each team was assigned the same case site and provided the essential information assumptions about a 21-acre property in St. Louis along the Mississippi River.

鈥淥ur goal was to use the information given to come up with a full redevelopment plan, a revitalization plan for a 21-acre site in St. Louis that is about a mile away from the Arch and a mile away from downtown St. Louis,鈥� said Townsend, who served as the team leader. 鈥淭his site was supposed to be the location for the new stadium for the Rams before they moved to Los Angeles. We created a mixed-use development to enhance the area and also create a new place where people can live and work.鈥�

The 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock team came up with a plan that included renovating four of the five historical buildings. The redevelopment plan included three apartment buildings with first-floor retail shops, an underground parking lot, storage facilities, a Japanese-themed brewery, an event hall, a river walk along the Mississippi River, and an amphitheater with plenty of green space for residents.

Graveline even created an app for the planned development that would have served as an online community for the residents as well as a way to connect with all the businesses.

鈥淥ur plan was to create an app that would connect people with all of the businesses so that they wouldn鈥檛 have to go to multiple websites or apps to make a reservation, learn about the business, or find out when an event was happening,鈥� Graveline said. 鈥淭he app also gave a description of the history of each building because it鈥檚 a historically rich area. We wanted to create a community where people didn鈥檛 have to leave the area to find what they needed.鈥�

One of the biggest challenges of the competition was the financial aspect. The students鈥� development plan had to contain a comprehensive analysis and conclusion of how to maximize the potential of the property from both a financial and feasibility standpoint.

鈥淥ur total project cost was about $179 million,鈥� Bagandov said. 鈥淲e had to make sure we were able to manage the property for 10 years, after which it could be sold. We ended up financing the project with loans from three different banks, because dividing the financing up makes the project more palatable to lenders.鈥�

The project also had to be self-sustainable and generate a certain amount of profit. This led to a lot of changes throughout the plans, including nixing a hotel and marina, switching from townhouses to apartment buildings, and adding first-floor retail space. Overall, the team members were very satisfied with the final product.

鈥淭he idea was to bring everybody back to the river,鈥� Cummings said. 鈥淲e wanted people to get close to the river as well as preserve the historical and architectural details of the property.鈥�

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