December 20, 2003
Belmont Awards Distinguished Nashville Businessman Honorary Ph.D
Belmont University has granted an honorary Doctor of Humanities degree to Nashville business leader Gordon E. Inman, founder, chairman and president of Franklin Financial Corporation, is a Belmont University trustee. He was awarded the honorary doctorate by Belmont University President Dr. Robert C. Fisher during Winter Commencement ceremonies Friday, Dec. 19, at the university's Curb Event Center.
"I've had the opportunity to write about a lot of business legends in my academic career including Sam Walton, Don Tyson, and William Dillard, but I don't know of any more amazing business success story than the Gordon Inman story," Fisher said. "The lessons that Belmont students can learn from the life of Gordon Inman relate to having a dream, working hard, having courage, caring about people, and living with integrity. We're so proud to be associated with Dr. Inman."
Fisher gave the commencement address to the more than 250 graduates of the school's forty-ninth graduating class.
The commencement ceremony was the first to be held in Belmont's new Curb Event Center, a 5,000-seat athletic and entertainment venue – and the event also featured the graduation of the first class of the new Mike Curb College of Entertainment and Music Business at Belmont, formerly the Mike Curb School of Music Business.
Inman, a distinguished member of the greater Nashville business community, was presented the degree in recognition of his entrepreneurial success in a variety of business ventures.
Among the businesses Inman started or had a hand in building: The Maryland Group public relations and advertising agency in Brentwood, the Middle Tennessee division of Cellular One, the Nashville Scene weekly newspaper, First National Bank of Knoxville and Inman Realtors.
He founded Franklin Financial Corporation, holding company of Franklin National Bank, in 1989. The company grew to become Williamson County's largest independently-owned bank. A real estate developer, Inman developed the NationsBank Building in Brentwood, the Brentwood Place Shopping Center, and was one of the original developers of a downtown Nashville hotel/office high-rise.
Inman received Middle Tennessee State University's Entrepreneur of the Year award for 2000-01, and MTSU's Jennings A. Jones College of Business school gave him its Jennings Jones Award/Champion of Excellence in Free Enterprise, in 2000.
Inman is involved with several civic and community organizations in Nashville-Davidson County and Williamson County. He currently serves as a trustee for Belmont University and is on the executive committee of the Middle Tennessee Council of the Boy Scouts of America.
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