Hodges Dedicates Classroom to Local Businessman

PICTURED L-R: PHIL MEMOLI, VP OF UNIVERSITY ADVANCEMENT; TOM HORTON;
DR. JEANETTE BROCK, HODGES UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT.

In recognition of his many years of support, Hodges University has dedicated a classroom in honor of local businessman Tom Horton and his late wife Laura. The classroom is located on the University’s Fort Myers campus.

Mr. Horton, founder and former CEO of Palm Printing Solutions of Fort Myers, recently served as honorary chair for the Hodges’ Tenth Annual Spring Golf Classic. The event, held at Fiddlesticks Country Club in Fort Myers, raised over $75,000 in scholarship support for student veterans and other deserving students.

“Tom has been a great friend and supporter of our institution for many years,” said Phil Memoli, Vice President of University Advancement. “He was responsible for organizing our first golf tournament and actually chaired it for the first two years. For our tenth anniversary, we were honored to have him serve as honorary chair, and it is in this spirit that we have decided to dedicate a classroom in his honor.”

To date, nearly $500,000 has been raised to provide scholarships for deserving students. Many of these students include military veterans who have valiantly served in Iraq and Afghanistan. These students are working to make the difficult and arduous transition from military to civilian life. Currently, over 250 students at Hodges are veterans.

“It feels especially good to be part of an event that gives back to our military. Hodges has treated our returning veterans very well and it feels good to be connected with a school that has done so much for our military.” A veteran himself, Mr. Horton served as a pilot in the Marine Corp for six years.

Memoli also commented on the importance of scholarships for Hodges students. “Supporting these students is an investment in our community, to assure the skilled workforce we need to drive the economic development of our community,” he said. “Hodges University students live, work and raise their families here. Their ambition and determination to seek advanced degrees is vital to serving the current and future needs of our citizens.”

The majority of Hodges University’s approximately 2,500 students are adult learners who are tasked with maintaining families and fulltime jobs. For these students, Hodges provides a curriculum designed to complement, not complicate, their busy lives. Small, but rigorous classes, flexible scheduling, online learning, individual attention from a dedicated administration and faculty, and access to a state-of-theart library, each are among the attributes that culminate into everyday rewards experienced by students at Hodges University.