KNOXVILLE — Attending law school is a huge financial undertaking. Thanks to a $1 million gift, the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, College of Law can now provide more help to students with demonstrated financial need.
Tennessee native Carl Colloms, a 1966 UT law graduate, donated the $1 million gift. It will benefit an existing law scholarship that bears his name, the Judge Carl E. Colloms scholarship endowment.
While the donation is an estate gift, Colloms expects to contribute toward it annually.
“I don’t think any kid should be denied a good education because they can’t afford one,” Colloms said. “I know from my personal experience how valuable scholarships are.”
Colloms has practiced law, either privately or publicly, since graduating from UT Knoxville. He has held the position of county judge, city judge and county attorney in Charleston, Tenn., and Bradley County, in addition to working in private practice during his legal career.
He currently manages several real estate ventures and serves as the child support magistrate for the 10th Judicial District of Tennessee, which includes Bradley, Polk, Monroe and McMinn counties.
Douglas A. Blaze, dean of the UT College of Law, said the gift will make a major impact on the lives of the students who benefit from it.
“Carl Colloms has been a wonderful supporter of the UT College of Law over the years, and we are immensely grateful for his latest commitment to legal education,” Blaze said. “He was the first in his family to graduate from college, and he has never forgotten those who helped him. Carl’s ability to recognize the need to keep legal education open to students from all walks of life and his resolve to help us meet that need will have a lasting effect on the college and our students.”
C O N T A C T :
Tanya Brown, (865-974-6788, tgbrown@utk.edu)
Kristi Hintz, (865-974-3993, khintz@utk.edu)