Point University hosted a naming ceremony on Friday for the Alan E. Stith College of Business in honor of alumnus and former trustee Alan E. Stith.
A 1964 graduate of the University of Georgia, Stith served in the Army before joining his family in building Stith Equipment Company, a respected construction equipment dealer. He played a pivotal role in the growth and success of that business. In 1989, after selling Stith Equipment Co., Stith enrolled in what was then Atlanta Christian College and earned a bachelor of theology degree with honors. He went on to earn a master’s degree from Cincinnati Bible Seminary. He was called by his church, Southwest Christian Church, to join their staff as associate pastor, a role he filled for 18 years. Stith also served on Point University’s board of trustees for nearly 20 years.
“My joy was studying at Point University,” said Stith during the ceremony. “That college experience at Point made me love this school. To be a person who’s had the educational opportunities I’ve had is a praise to God.”
“To name the College of Business after alumnus and trustee emeritus, Alan Stith, fits Point’s culture and our mission,” said President Dean Collins. “Alan had a successful career in the Stith Equipment business for many years and followed that career with a second career in ministry. He is a leader who is known as one who cheers up, stirs up, and builds up his coworkers, his friends, and his family. We are honored to display his name on our business college.
“I use a book in my ethics class by John Maxwell, called There’s No Such Thing as Business Ethics,” said Dr. Todd Weaver, dean of the Stith College of Business. “It’s a provocative title, but he finishes that statement with, ‘There is only ethics.’ In other words, Christians can’t check their faith at the threshold of their businesses. Alan Stith has been an example of this principle and a testimony to the perspective we try to instill in all our students: that we can glorify God in a business vocation, as we are called to glorify Him in all that we do.”
The Stith College of Business – formerly the College of Business and Leadership – is home to the departments of accounting and finance, management, and marketing and public relations. For more information, please visit point.edu/stith.
