Amarillo College hosted a community celebration Thursday morning at the FirstBank Southwest Center on its Washington Street Campus to mark the success of its Badger Bold Comprehensive Campaign — a five-year effort that has reshaped opportunities for students and strengthened the college’s role in the Panhandle.
The event featured success stories, donor recognition, and remarks from community leaders, highlighting the campaign’s wide-reaching impact. Attendees also enjoyed food, fellowship, and a chance to commemorate the accomplishments that were made possible through widespread community support.
“Our community has truly rallied behind the Badger Bold Campaign, and this celebration is about honoring both the incredible generosity of our supporters and the remarkable achievements of our students,” said Joe Bill Sherrod, AC’s vice president for Development.
A Historic Fundraising Effort
The Badger Bold Campaign, the first comprehensive campaign in the college’s 93-year history, launched its quiet phase in September 2020 during the uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite those challenges, Amarillo College not only met but exceeded its goal, raising $47,202,329 by the campaign’s conclusion.
Initially, the feasibility study suggested a target of $30 million. That goal shifted upward after an unexpected $15 million donation from philanthropist MacKenzie Scott in April 2021. With Scott’s contribution, AC raised its goal to $45 million before launching the public phase in 2022.
Sherrod credited the community’s resilience: “What we know about our community is, at its core, this pioneer spirit that is never going to lose out. And it’s a culture that is accustomed to perseverance.”
Where the Money Went
According to campaign steering committee member Carol Lovelady, the funds were directed toward three key priorities:
Student experience – Over $30 million
Faculty and staff enrichment – Over $5 million
Capital enhancements – Approximately $11 million
Scholarship support was a cornerstone of the effort. Sherrod noted that 27 of the 30 planned $100,000 scholarships were successfully established. “We were testing for a $35 million campaign. They basically told us, ‘$30 million, you can do a $30 million campaign,’” Sherrod explained, reflecting on how far the college has come since its earliest planning stages.
Lovelady emphasized the impact on the community: “I think that Amarillo College is a win-win, that it serves a huge swath of the Amarillo community, and many of those people, it changes their lives, and those people turn around and serve our community.”
Major Milestones and Gifts
Several key gifts and milestones helped propel the campaign forward:
2020: AC Board of Regents voted to reestablish intercollegiate athletics.
2021: Aspen Institute named AC one of the nation’s top five community colleges; AC received MacKenzie Scott’s $15 million donation.
2022: FirstBank Southwest gave $3 million, leading to the renaming of the Carter Fitness Center as the FirstBank Southwest Center.
2023: Amarillo National Bank pledged a total of $3.7 million; AC was awarded the Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, sharing the $1 million award with Imperial Valley College; Education Credit Union contributed $500,000 to establish five STEM scholarships.
2024: AC opened its renovated First Responders Academy.
Looking Ahead
The success of the Badger Bold Campaign has positioned Amarillo College as a regional leader in student opportunity and institutional growth. With its 100th anniversary approaching in 2029, Sherrod said the college is already considering the possibility of launching another capital campaign to mark the milestone.
For Lovelady, the campaign has already proven its worth: “I just think that we don’t realize often enough how valuable Amarillo College is to the people who go there and what the people who have gone to Amarillo College do in our community.”
As the celebration underscored, the Badger Bold Campaign was not only about dollars raised, but about lives changed — and the ripple effect of generosity throughout the Amarillo region.
