Nashville Downtown Partnership honors Lipscomb with its 2017 Invest Award for new downtown Spark
Lacey Klotz |
Each year, the Nashville Downtown Partnership awards outstanding achievement in downtown Nashville in four categories, live, work, play and invest, that each model the organization’s desire to make downtown Nashville the compelling urban center in the Southeast.
On Wednesday, Oct. 18, the Nashville Downtown Partnership honored Lipscomb University with the 2017 Invest Award for establishing Spark, the first-of-its-kind higher education resource in downtown Nashville at the 2017 Annual Meeting and Awards Luncheon.
Hosted by Ron Gobbell, board chairman of the Nashville Downtown Partnership, and Tom Turner, president and CEO, the annual luncheon was held at the Omni Hotel in Nashville and featured guest speaker Gabe Klein, author of “Start-Up City,” and music by The Hume-Fogg Academic Magnet High School Silver Jazz Band.
“The partnership has new neighbors across the street at 4th and Commerce,” said Turner. “In September, Spark: Lipscomb University's Idea Center celebrated its grand opening. Spark has 20,100 square feet of creative collaboration space in the ground floor of the 4th & Commerce Garage. The addition of Spark has totally revitalized that corner.
“Spark provides the latest in technology and connectivity, as well as flexible space that accommodates groups from two to 200 people. With a learning studio, a conference studio and a media lounge, Spark can configure to meet any organization’s needs.
“In conjunction with Spark, The Well Coffeehouse also opened with an entrance on the Commerce Street side. It is a mission-based coffeehouse focused on sustainable solutions to provide safe and clean drinking water.”
John Lowry, senior vice president for advancement and the former executive director of Spark during its development, accepted the honor and says he is grateful for the ways Lipscomb and its new Spark facility is providing access to education in innovative ways.
“We are humbled and honored to not only receive this award, but to invest in downtown Nashville,” said Lowry. “As the first-of-its-kind higher education resource, Spark serves the community by providing state-of-the-art meeting spaces and innovative delivery systems for Lipscomb graduate, adult learning and certificate students, as well as for corporations and community organizations in need of a creative venue. Spark is designed to be a leadership resource and strives to strategically provide access to education, professional development and innovative thinking through our rigourous curriculum, unique leadership development programs and creative event spaces.”
Since opening its downtown Nashville doors this September, Spark has opened a full slate of graduate courses, has hosted several leadership development initiatives, such as its Driving Sales Performance certificate program and its new CEO Connect program, and has featured several noteworthy speakers including Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam, Nashville Mayor Megan Barry, as well as New York Times best-selling author and professor at Stanford University’s School of Business Chip Heath. The first-of-its-kind higher education resource in downtown Nashville also currently has 39 meetings scheduled through the end of the year.
In fall 2012, Lipscomb University opened its first Spark facility in Franklin’s Cool Springs area, a 6,400-square-foot space that has since hosted nearly 20,000 individuals, including 487 graduate students and 150 organizations, such as school boards, chambers of commerce, corporations and nonprofit organizations among others. Nearly 850 meetings have been held there during that time as well. In addition, dozens of companies have used the Cool Springs facility as a resource for customized leadership training.
Want to take your business to the next level? Sign up for a professional development session, graduate course or lock-in a venue for a meeting by visiting spark.lipscomb.edu.