Nancy (BSED, ’82) and Les Juneau, and their Atlanta-based construction company, Juneau Construction, have been long-time supporters of the University of Georgia. Nancy and Les have made gifts to every school, college and unit at UGA, and in 2023, they established the Juneau Construction Endowed Professorship in Civil Engineering. Even though they are not graduates of the College of Engineering, they recognize that the college is on an upward trend and hope that their support will attract a top-tier educator who will prepare students to succeed both in the classroom and in their next steps in life.
Tell us about your ties to UGA.
Nancy : “I graduated from UGA in 1982 and really only attended the occasional football game until the early 2000s, when the UGA Development folks called on Les and me and asked us to be a part of the renovation of the historic Delta Hall in Washington D.C., which we did, and that was our first involvement in giving back to UGA. From that point, we have loved having several Georgia Commitment Scholarships and, most recently, in the past 5-6 years we have been engaged with the College of Engineering, along with others.”
What are some of your fondest memories of UGA?
“Winning the 1980 National Championship when I was in school! Having the opportunity to meet several of our scholarship students, and getting to make an offer and ultimately hire an engineering scholarship student as a VDC Engineer with Juneau Construction once she graduated.”
“I said how do we pick just one place to make a difference…let’s give something to them all, and we did!”
What was your favorite class?
“My favorite class was a public speaking class and getting to talk about how I started a swim team from scratch at a new club/pool in the city of Atlanta when I was a junior at UGA.”
How did your time at UGA springboard you into the prolific career you have today?
“While I didn’t take any construction-specific classes, I think my time at UGA and a combination of classes/volunteer work/executive positions within my sorority helped me with confidence and leadership experience.”
You’ve personally supported every school, college and unit here at UGA. What is your motivation for giving back in such an impactful way?
“One thing I enjoyed during the Covid era was, while working from home in Athens, I was able to remotely meet with every single development director for each school/college/unit as part of my role as a Foundation Trustee and Chair of the Development Committee. I was overwhelmed by each director’s passion for their particular unit and their commitment to the students or grad students and professors as well. Les was also often able to overhear our conversations and he was totally blown away too. I said how do we pick just one place to make a difference…let’s give something to them all, and we did!”
“UGA Engineering’s stock as a program is rising every year. We have experienced first-hand the talent of its graduates, who will only continue to be more impressive as they are mentored by the best professors in the business.”
Your company, Juneau Construction Company, endowed the Juneau Construction Company Professorship in Civil Engineering in 2023. What was your motivation behind this?
Les: “UGA Engineering’s stock as a program is rising every year. We have experienced first-hand the talent of its graduates, who will only continue to be more impressive as they are mentored by the best professors in the business. Perhaps this donation will play a small role in attracting the best available or elevating a current faculty member.”
What are your hopes for the faculty member who will ultimately hold this Professorship?
“The professorship could provide valuable funds for research, etc. on techniques and technology being used on large construction sites in today’s world that can be taught, at least on a basic level, in the classroom.”
“Professors can be role models who listen to the challenges students are facing and provide guidance on preparing them to succeed in the classroom and readying them for the next step.”
From your perspective, what are some of the greatest challenges facing today’s students? What is your vision for the holder of the Professorship in enabling students to meet those challenges?
“Challenges can come in many forms – financial struggles, clarity in selecting career paths, difficulties with certain classes during college, finding the right fit/culture for a future employer. Professors can be role models who listen to the challenges students are facing and provide guidance on preparing them to succeed in the classroom and readying them for the next step.”
If you could say one thing to someone who is considering donating to UGA Engineering, what would it be?
“Potential donors will recognize that UGA Engineering is blessed with strong leadership and faculty members who are graduating well-rounded talent. Our experience has been that UGA engineers contribute in a very meaningful way in a short amount of time; however, most importantly, all of our UGA students, from both engineering and business, have proved to be hard-working, solid individuals.”
