The Stokely name appears in many places—most recently the new Stokely Hall—on the UT Knoxville campus.
The new nine-floor, 375,000-square-foot building opened in January to more than 600 students.
The campus also is home to the Stokely Management Center and the Stokely Media Center in Neyland Stadium. The name is part of prestigious faculty titles, too, such as the Stokely Professor of Management and the William B. Stokely Jr. Foundation Dean’s Chair in the Haslam College of Business.
William B. “Bill” Stokely III earned a bachelor’s degree in business in 1963. He played on the UT football team, carrying on a family tradition; his grandfather was captain on the 1894 team.
“We’ve had four William B. Stokelys graduate from UT—my grandfather, my father, myself and my son,” Stokely says. “I’ve always kept a connection, even when living other places. UT has always been a big part of our connection back to our Tennessee home.”
Stokely has held leadership posts in the family’s businesses and its UT connection. In Indianapolis, where he ran Stokely Van Camp, he started a UT Alumni chapter. Stokely was chair emeritus of the Campaign for Tennessee and chaired the Haslam College of Business’s first capital campaign in the 1970s, which raised $3 million.
He served as national chair of the University’s 21st Century Campaign, corporate co-chair of the Tennessee Tomorrow Campaign, and twice chaired the university’s Development Council and has served on the Board of Trustees. He is a lifetime member of the Haslam College of Business Advisory Council.
