Milligan College Announces the William B. Greene, Jr. School of Business and Technology

Posted: 4.28.2014

Milligan College President Dr. Bill Greer announced a new academic structure that reorganizes the college’s nine academic areas into five schools, with the business school becoming the first to be named, thanks to a generous gift of several million dollars from local banker William B. Greene Jr.

A Milligan trustee and chair of BancTenn Corporation, Greene became president and CEO of Carter County Bank in Elizabethton, Tenn., at the age of 24, making him the youngest CEO of a financial institution in the United States. In 1974, he co-founded Bank of Tennessee in Kingsport, Tenn., and is currently chairman of BancTenn Corporation, which holds ownership of Bank of Tennessee, Carter County Bank and Mountain Community Bank. He is a member of the Tennessee Banking Hall of Fame.

“Bill Greene has been a longtime Milligan supporter and friend of the college. This brings two of his passions together — Milligan College and preparing future leaders for business and industry,” Greer said.

He holds a bachelor’s degree in history and philosophy from Wake Forest University, where he served as chairman of the Board of Trustees and where the psychology and foreign language building bears his name. He has done post-graduate study at Wake Forest, Northwestern, Harvard and Rutgers universities.

Numerous organizations have benefited from Greene’s leadership and generosity over the years, including Milligan, the Elizabethton/Carter County Chamber of Commerce, Tennessee Performing Arts Center, Elizabethton Kiwanis Club, Boy Scouts of America, Carter County Cancer Society, Elizabethton Boys and Girls Club, Tri-Cities Business Alliance, East Tennessee State University and the World Presidents’ Organization.

“Providing opportunities to support future business leaders with a quality education has always been very important to me,” Greene said. “Milligan College provides an opportunity for its students to learn and thrive in today’s dynamic and competitive business world with the highest moral and ethical standards. With the knowledge they gain during their time at Milligan, these students will enter the workforce and have the ability to make a positive impact on our regional and national economy.

“The gift of a quality education not only benefits the person receiving it, but also blesses the company they work for and the local economy on a continual basis,” Greene said. “I believe in the mission of Milligan’s School of Business and Technology and am proud to be in a position to support their mission and be part of their success now and in the future.”

The School will contain the Area of Business, the Area of Computer Science, and potentially the Area of Engineering.

Bank of Tennessee is a community bank headquartered in East Tennessee, including its divisions Carter County Bank and Mountain Community Bank. For more information, call (423) 378.9500.

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