Howley Foundation Grants Funds to Construct Williamson College Dormitory

Williamson College of the Trades is proud and grateful to announce a recent gift of $7M from The Howley Foundation. The generous donation will help fund the construction of a new 72-bed dormitory, thereby extending the opportunity of a Williamson education to a greater number of students. To recognize the gift, the College’s new residence hall will bear the Howley name.

Founder and chairman, W. Nicholas Howley articulates that The Howley Foundation’s mission is to support social and economic mobility by providing educational opportunity. A quality education, he asserts, combines strong academic instruction with an emphasis on character formation.

W. Nicholas Howley is the founder and executive chairman of TransDigm Group, Inc., a New York Stock Exchange listed company. TransDigm is one of the largest worldwide producers of highly engineered aerospace components. Nick said, “We have been very impressed with the program at Williamson. It is a unique institution that offers the students a mix of highly employable skills and sound character formation. We are pleased to be able to assist in the expansion of the school’s capacity to provide this outstanding educational opportunity to 20% more students. “

Williamson President Michael J. Rounds said “Increasing our enrollment over the next five years is one of our strategic goals. We turn away hundreds of applicants each year because we need to have the resources to fund the tuition-free educational costs inclusive of room and board for each student and the facility to house the students. The Howley Foundation’s commitment to Scholarships for Williamson students and Capital Support to build a new dormitory will significantly help us achieve our goals. We are deeply grateful for their partnership with us.” President Rounds added, “Over the next five years, the College will expand the size of its student body and add a new trade to its curriculum. With additional dormitory beds, the College will be able to grow its freshman class from 101 young men to at least 124. Together with the increased scholarship support from the Howley Foundation, we will be able to expand the opportunity of a Williamson education to more students each year.”

The new dormitory will have 36 double-occupancy student rooms. Each floor of the three-story building will have a student lounge with a kitchenette, a large hall bathroom, and an apartment for an adult dormitory manager. Construction will begin in the first half of 2023, so that it will be ready for student occupancy in the fall, 2024.

Williamson students are prepared to be top-tier tradesmen in the workforce. The rigorous instruction combined with the College’s core values of faith, integrity, diligence, excellence and service produce the kind of tradesmen who companies compete to hire. Last year over 200 employers from 16 states attended the Career Fairs on campus to recruit one of the 65 graduating seniors.

About Williamson:

Williamson College of the Trades was established in 1888 through a $2 million gift from Isaiah V. Williamson. For over 134 years, Williamson has provided an opportunity for financially-challenged young men to receive a tuition free education for a career in the trades. The Williamson educational model emphasizes character development and leadership training. Williamson graduates 75 percent of students who enroll and 96 percent of the students have employment upon graduation. Williamson graduates earn an Associate in Specialized Technology Degree in one of the following programs: Construction Technology—Carpentry Emphasis; Construction Technology—Electrical Emphasis; Construction Technology—Masonry Emphasis; Landscape Construction and Management; Machine Tool Technology; and Power Plant Technology.