![\"field](\"https:\/\/sites.coloradocollege.edu\/bulletin\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/281\/files\/2012\/04\/field-view-fade.jpg\")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The new fitness center under construction at Colorado College\u2019s El Pomar Sports Center will be named the Adam F. Press Fitness Center in recognition of significant philanthropic leadership by Press, a CC trustee and 1984 graduate.<\/p>\n
![\"Adam](\"https:\/\/sites.coloradocollege.edu\/bulletin\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/281\/files\/2012\/04\/adampress.jpg\")
Press has committed $3.5 million in unrestricted support to further the college\u2019s strategic agenda, including the fitness\u00a0 center project, which is part of a $27 million facelift to the building that has housed the school\u2019s varsity, club, and intramural programs along with coaches and administration since 1970.<\/p>\n
Construction on the \u201cgateway\u201d addition on El Pomar\u2019s south side began on Oct. 31, 2011, with completion of the entire project scheduled for spring 2013.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe addition of the fitness center to El Pomar Sports Center will allow us to provide excellent health and wellness opportunities for Colorado College students and employees for years to come,\u201d said CC President Jill Tiefenthaler. \u201cAdam Press has shown visionary leadership with this commitment. I am grateful for his generous support and thrilled that it will have such a great impact on Colorado College.\u201d<\/p>\n
While fundraising efforts continue for the overall project, the recent timely gift brings the college to within $2.8 million of its goal. In 2007, El Pomar Foundation donated $10 million toward on-campus building improvements and scholarships after CC\u2019s<\/p>\n
\u201cVision 2010\u201d initiative identified the fitness center and library renovations as priorities four years earlier. All but $1.5 million\u00a0 of that amount was allocated to the athletics center facelift.<\/p>\n
Press, a Walnut Creek, Calif., native who now lives in Los Angeles, is an active investor, art collector, and philanthropist. He served as chairman and CEO of The St. John Companies, Inc. (1992-2010), as well as director of equity investments for the Thyssen-Bornemisza Group in Monte Carlo (1989-91), and worked in the New York corporate finance department of PaineWebber (1986-89). He holds an MBA from Columbia University in addition to his bachelor\u2019s degree in political economy from Colorado College. He also serves on the boards\u00a0 of Jewish Vocational Services in Los Angeles, as well as New York-based Freedom to Marry.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s an honor to assist in making the new El Pomar Sports Center a reality,\u201d Press said. \u201cI am thrilled to play a role in such a worthwhile initiative at my alma mater. I hope that this facility proves to be an enormous asset for Colorado College athletes and for the entire student body.\u201d<\/p>\n
The 29,000-square-foot fitness center will offer secure space for recreational activities while providing an enhanced sense of community within Colorado College and ensuring that all students have access to the facilities.<\/p>\n