International College, an independent, not-for-profit four-year institution, announced May 15, 2007 that it received a $12 million gift from long-time Naples residents and community benefactors Earl and Thelma Hodges. In conjunction with the gift, the institution changed its name to Hodges University and moved from college status to university status. “This is a significant announcement not only for our institution but also for the communities we serve throughout the southwest region of Florida,” said Terry P. McMahan, President of International College. “This historic donation will enable us to better position our school as one of Florida's leading institutions of higher learning and allow us to achieve our long-term goal of university status. We are fortunate to have generous benefactors like Earl and Thelma Hodges.” “While we are not a research institution, we do encourage faculty to engage in applied research,” McMahan said. “We believe that moving to university status will further open doors for our faculty to pursue higher levels of research which will, in turn, benefit our student population as well as our reputation in the educational community at large.”