News Release

Falls Prize to support MBA fellows
at UNC's Kenan-Flagler Business School

CHAPEL HILL - University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill alumnus Ralph L. Falls Jr. has endowed $25,000 stipends for six UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School MBA fellows who demonstrate the highest potential for leadership, superior academic achievement and a diversity of lifetime experiences in each incoming class.

Falls, a 1963 graduate of the business school who lives in Raleigh, named the prize for his father, Dr. Ralph L. Falls Sr. Every year, outstanding MBA students who accept fellowships to attend UNC Kenan-Flagler will receive the two-year stipend as a supplement to their fellowship awards. The prizes are expected to be awarded for the first time during the 2007-2008 academic year.

"The quality of any school is dependent on the quality of its students," said Kenan-Flagler Dean Steve Jones. "With unprecedented fellowship support such as this, we can increase the number of students we attract, and help them become the business leaders of tomorrow."

"The Falls Prize is a powerful resource that will enable Kenan-Flagler to yield even more of the most promising MBA candidates into perpetuity," said Sherry Wallace, director of MBA admissions at the business school. "It further distinguishes us as a program that is focused on enrolling the world's best students."

Falls is on the boards of the North Carolina Museum of Natural Science and the Psychiatric Hospital Group in Chapel Hill and serves on UNC Kenan-Flagler's board of visitors. He spent his career in the medical industry, first as the founder of Charter Medical Corp., and most recently as owner and CEO of the medical supply company Roane Barker Inc. for 20 years.

Falls Sr., for whom the prize is named, attended Carolina before entering Atlanta Southern Dental College in Georgia, which later became Emory University School of Dentistry. He served as a dentist during World War II and ran a private dental practice in Morganton until his death in 1994.

"My father was a very generous person who was dedicated to his family, church and farming," Falls said. "This gift will honor his interest in giving back and supporting future business leaders."

Falls' gift counts toward the Carolina First Campaign, a comprehensive, multi-year, private fund-raising campaign with a goal of $2 billion to support Carolina's vision of becoming the nation's leading public university. For more information about UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School, visit http://www.kenan-flagler.unc.edu.

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UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School contacts: Allison Reid, (919) 962-8951, allison_reid@unc.edu; or Allison Adams, (919) 962-7235, allison_adams@unc.edu
News Services contact: Kyle York, (919) 962-8415 or kyle_york@unc.edu