The tailgate party before the Florida State-Miami football game provided the backdrop for the official launch of the campaign for Legacy Hall, the College of Business’s future home.

Donations and pledges by members of the college’s board of governors, alumni, faculty, staff and students, who attended the kickoff, totaled more than $587,200, and includes a $500,000 check from Syn-Tech Systems Inc. and a $5,000 check from Florida State’s Phi Kappa Tau fraternity. Florida State President Eric Barron also was on hand to show support and reiterate his willingness to provide part of the funding for the $65 plus-million building. The College of Business is expected to raise $35 to $45 million.

Legacy Hall will be constructed near the Leon County Civic Center, which is soon to become the new gateway to the Florida State University campus. The new building will provide a 67 percent increase in instructional space, along with the technology and collaborative spaces needed to provide tomorrow’s business education.

Providing a major boost to the campaign was a $500,000 gift presented at the launch by Doug Dunlap, president of engineering design firm of Syn-Tech Systems Inc., and David Oglesby, the company’s vice president for operations. Both graduated with degrees in business administration, Dunlap in 1973, and Oglesby in 1972.

Legacy Hall Faculty and Staff Campaign Chair Kathleen McCullough sees the campaign as a concrete step toward attaining the long-awaited state-of-the-art building and a resource for attracting top-notch faculty and students.

“We have heard plans for some time, but the launch was a tangible sign that the dream is within reach,” said McCullough, State Farm Insurance Professor of Risk Management and Insurance and assistant department chair. “Our participation is a signal to alumni and the community of how important we feel the new building is to the college and university. “

For members of Phi Kappa Tau, the campaign for Legacy Hall provides an opportunity to engender the spirit of philanthropy campus wide, as well as to forge a solid relationship with the College of Business. The 140-member chapter is made up of about 65 percent business students, according to sophomore Daniel Dispenziere, the chapter’s executive vice president and a finance and marketing major.

During the check presentation, Dispenziere challenged all student organizations to look at their fall and spring philanthropic giving and find a way to give back to Florida State.

“All of us have incredible platforms by which to help this university grow and prosper,” said Dispenziere. “We just need to make it happen.”

The college’s original building was completed in 1958 at a time when the College of Business enrolled roughly 800 students. In 1984, an annex was added, and the entire building was dedicated as the Charles A. Rovetta Business Building. At the time, the college enrolled 3,000 students. Today, the college enrolls roughly 6,000 undergraduate and graduate students.