Reinhardt Designates Gift To Serve Theater Program

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The estate gift of Mozelle Tarpley was recently voted by the Reinhardt Board of Trustees to be restricted to serve the University’s theater program.

The gift will continue to draw interest that will be awarded at 5 percent for student scholarships until an additional amount is raised to construct a theatre building. The Stage Arts Center, as it’s also known, will be named for Fred and Mozelle Tarpley.

“The Tarpley name has long been associated with Reinhardt University,” said Board Chair Billy Hasty, Jr. “Family members live in Waleska, home of the University, and others have lived in other parts of the state. Regardless, the Tarpley family has remained committed to Reinhardt with gifts and support.

“Reinhardt has again been blessed by the Tarpley famly with a gift from the estate of Mrs. Mozelle Tarpley. The family recently gave $1,670,500 as an unrestricted gift; however, the University has elected to restrict the gift to its thriving theatre program. We are very grateful to the Tarpley family and their dedication to Reinhardt.”

Education was woven into the fabric of the Tarpleys’ lives. Fred Tarpley began his career as a teacher, and she devoted her life to the profession. Both attended Reinhardt in the late 1930s. During their time at Reinhardt, the Tarpleys worked hard to achieve their goals, and both worked on campus to help their parents with tuition costs and give back to the college for the education they received.

After graduating from Reinhardt, Mr. Tarpley taught at Oak Grove Junior High School. In 1942, he joined the U.S. Naval Reserve, serving aboard a ship in the Amphibian Fleet in the Pacific and invaded Okinawa during World War II. Mozelle Tarpley entered the teaching profession at Eton Elementary School while she waited for Fred Tarpley to return from war.

The couple married on June 1, 1946, after the war ended, and moved to Dalton. Mrs. Tarpley continued her teaching career in the Dalton City School system, and Mr. Tarpley entered the banking field at First National Bank of Dalton. After 40 years in banking, Mr. Tarpley retired as a group vice president.

In 1998, the Tarpleys also gave Reinhardt a $1 million gift to fund a new academic building on campus — the Fred H. and Mozelle Bates Tarpley Education Center.

“As an alumnus of Reinhardt, I appreciate loyal alumni, with a continuing interest in and support of their alma mater,” said Ken White, board member. “Mr. and Mrs. Tarpley not only made the naming gift for the Tarpley Education Center at Reinhardt in 1998, they left a legacy through this most generous planned gift that will help transform the lives of many young people.”

David Nisbet, assistant professor of theatre, added to White’s sentiments.

“The theatre program would like to thank the Reinhardt Board of Trustees for seeing our need and taking decisive action to meet it,” he stated. “We are looking forward to the day when we have a dedicated space for our students to learn their craft and the public can enjoy even higher quality productions.”

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