Alumnus invests in University of Mississippi accounting program – The Local Voice

N. Gordon Thompson contributes to the building fund

by Tina H. Hahn

N. Gordon Thompson hopes that his investment in the Patterson School of AccountingThe new building at the University of Mississippi will help the school continue to maintain national rankings.

“The Patterson School of Accountancy is consistently ranked among the best accounting programs in the country, attracting students to Ole Miss who want to prepare for careers as the next leaders in the accounting profession,” said the Memphis, Tennesseesaid one resident. “These students come from all over the country and beyond and set the bar for the overall reputation of Ole Miss.

“Similar to sports, facilities must be the best to compete with other top-ranked universities for the best accounting students. This facility with state-of-the-art capabilities will increase the visibility of the program and ensure the continued excellence of our university.”

Thompson’s $125,000 donation will fund the construction of the 100,000-square-foot new building for the Patterson School at the intersection of University Avenue and Grove Loop, overlooking the groveTo honor his gift, the school will name a second-floor teachers’ suite after Thompson.

“I look forward to the Patterson School maintaining its leading position among SEC schools and the top-ranked program in the country,” said the certified public accountant and wealth management consultant. “This facility will be a magnet that attracts talented students as well as the next generation of highly qualified faculty.”

The school has long been a fixture in national rankings, ranking 8th in the U.S. and 1st in the SEC.

Thompson and his wife, Jan, have made a long-standing commitment to “giving back out of appreciation for the blessings we have experienced through my education and experience at Ole Miss.”

“Our focus has been primarily on need-based scholarship opportunities at Ole Miss and in our broader Memphis community. We had not previously considered capital campaign projects, but we recognize the significant impact this facility will have on generations of accounting professionals.”

Mark Wilderthe dean of the school, expressed his appreciation for Thompson’s gift.

“I am humbled and inspired that Gordon Thompson and other former accountants are so interested, engaged and committed to helping our school achieve even greater heights,” said Wilder. “Gordon has been our loyal and generous supporter for many years – and has played a major role in the successes the Patterson School enjoys today.

“This new building will help us recruit outstanding students, faculty and staff and will ensure that the Patterson School has a bright future for decades to come.”

As a high school student, Thompson was attracted by Ole Miss’s then-relatively small enrollment and its proximity to his hometown of Memphis, where his mother had also studied. He thought his limited financial resources would keep him in Memphis, but was surprised with an offer of scholarships and financial aid.

Thompson visited Oxford for the first time when he arrived at the student union in the week before lectures began.

“Ultimately, I chose accounting because I expected it to provide the best foundation and a clearly defined career path,” he said. “This led to a deeper relationship with my Sigma Nu Liaison Advisor, (the late) Gene Peery and Dr. Jimmy Davis, both legendary accounting professors, who encouraged and supported me, including by getting me a part-time job at a local company.”

After graduating in 1975, he found himself in a difficult job market and initially worked as a junior accountant in a listed company, planning to study law.

“I quickly realized that the opportunity to serve a diverse clientele and work with them to achieve their goals was the career I was looking for,” said Thompson, founder and managing partner of Memphis CPA company Mayer Thompson Dunavant PLCthe largest local company at the time. “My partners and I are very proud of the hundreds of professional careers we have influenced in these 20 years.”

Today Thompson leads TD CapitalA Asset management Company he founded in 1996.

“Many of our current customer relationships date back to my early days in public accounting“, he said. “I can’t think of any other career path that would have been as rewarding as the one that began with Mr. Peery’s accounting course.”

Thompson and his wife previously donated the Claude P. Thompson Ole Miss First Scholarship to honor his mother while also helping accounting students from non-traditional families.

To learn more about how you can support the Patterson School of Accountancy building, contact Jason McCormick, executive director of development, at [email protected] or 662-915-1757; or donate online here.