SIUE School of Engineering Dedicates Classroom in Honor of The Goley Companies
Donors Are Members of Generational Family Insulation Business and Mentors of SIUE Construction Management Students
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville’s School of Engineering (SOE) held a room dedication and unveiling in honor of The Goley Companies. The family-owned company donated a $110,000 endowed gift to mark the company's 50th anniversary. SOE students are often employed by the company during their first or second year of academic instruction in the construction management program. With the endowment, select students are now Goley Company scholarship recipients.
“I am elated with the strong support the Goley Companies have given to the school’s mission,” said Cem Karacal, PhD, and Dean of SOE. "Their engagement with our students through classroom visits, internships, and their mentorship early in their education is exactly what is needed to recruit and retain well-prepared students and graduates for the construction profession. We are happy to have a partner like Goley that shares a common vision to make an impact in our region.”
Present at the ceremony were DeWayne (father) and Joseph Goley (son) of the company founded by the family in 1973. The Goley Companies specialize in delivering building performance solutions, such as insulation, air sealing, fire stopping and energy testing for both residential and commercial clients.
Joseph Goley visits campus often to speak to the introduction to construction classes. He told the students and guests in attendance how the company started in his grandparents’ basement, and then spoke of the importance of mentorship and the reasons the partnership with SIUE is strong.
“When we say the Goley family of companies, we don't just mean the people with the last name Goley. We mean the people that work to make building solutions for our customers and careers for our people and solve problems and strive to innovate and drive to win and deliver beyond expectations, not just externally in the market, but internally as well,” said Goley.
"We look at the responsibility that we have to advance the career of every member of our company, regardless of whether you are a first-year intern or whether you've been with the company for 35 years.”
“It's partnerships like the one we have with The Goley Companies that allow our students to literally build resilient communities,” said Connie Collins, CFRE, Vice Chancellor for University Advancement and CEO of the SIUE Foundation. “They have established this scholarship in perpetuity, so their impact will be felt here forever.”
The endowment funds an annual scholarship. Elliot Marsh, fourth-year construction management major, received the inaugural award during his spring semester.
“When I received The Goley Company scholarship, it was at a time of discouragement—a time where I was wondering if all the hard work I was putting into my school was really worth it,” said Marsh. “Now receiving The Goley Company scholarship gave me a renewed sense of motivation in my studies. And senior-itis notwithstanding, I plan to keep pressing on in my studies with this renewed desire to do the best I can in all I do.”
John Cabage, PhD, associate professor and Chair of the Department of Construction emceed the event and shared with the audience The Goley Companies’ five core values:
- A drive to win
- Mentoring those to step up and take ownership
- Deliver beyond expectations
- Striving to innovate
- Treat all that work together as a family
“The Goley family understands that the key to their successful and continued expansion will be due to their recruitment, mentoring and support of quality individuals,” said Cabage. “And they see SIUE's program as a way that they can connect with up-and-coming construction community members. To ensure that these successful core values are taught and are pervasive in our current and future students, the Goley family decided to give a legacy gift to advance the construction community.”
Joseph Goley adds, “We have gotten so much out of the relationship that we have with Southern Illinois University Edwardsville and the students and the professors that are part of this program, that we thought it was only right for us to give back to the community that's given us so much.”
PHOTOS: (top l. to r.)Elliot Marsh, fourth-year construction management major; John Cabage, PhD, associate professor and Chair of the Department of Construction addresses the audience; Joseph Goley; (bottom l. to r.)Joseph and DeWayne Goley of The Goley Companies; Lisa Smith, SOE Director of Development, DeWayne Goley, Joseph Goley, Denise Cobb, PhD, Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, Cabage, Cem Karacal, PhD, and Dean of SOE, Chris Gordon, PhD, and Associate Dean of SOE; Joseph and DeWayne Goley
