Cane Bay Partners VI, LLLP Co-Founder David Johnson is proud to have participated in the groundbreaking on Friday of the new Roy Richards Sr. Hall at the University of West Georgia, for which he provided the lead monetary gift.

The new 70,000-square-foot facility will house UWG’s Richards College of Business, of which Johnson is an alumnus. It will provide facilities for the Small Business Development Center, the Center for Economic Education and Financial Literacy, the Center for Business and Economic Research, flexible learning spaces, expanded administrative and faculty spaces, student learning labs and conference rooms.

“One of the best decisions I made was to Go West,” Johnson said during his remarks at the groundbreaking. “I’m really pleased to be in the financial position to make the lead gift and get the ball rolling. I have always wanted to repay what I have benefitted from.”

Richards College of Business Dean and Sewell Chair of Private Enterprise, Dr. Faye McIntyre, said the new facility will provide new opportunities for students, such as facilitating experiential learning. It is expected to open in late spring of 2021.

“We’re so grateful to Johnson for leading the charge with his donation because it created a domino effect that enabled the project,” said Dr. McIntyre. “We’re also extremely proud to claim Johnson as an alumnus as he represents the talent and attitude that we nurture here at UWG.”

The school and the building are named for the late Roy Richards Sr., also an alumnus of the school. He founded Southwire Company LLC, North America’s leading manufacturer of wire and cable.

UWG Interim President Dr. Micheal Crafton announced at the university’s Presidential Scholarship Gala that Johnson will also be endowing a Debate Team scholarship with annual funding. Johnson first interacted with UWG as a high school student attending their debate summer programs and attributes that experience to his success and choices that led him to pursuing an education at UWG.

“We all have choices in life, there are things you can’t control, but I see now that each choice has the potential to change your course for better or worse, and for me, joining debate club in high school led me to UWG, where I joined Kappa Sigma, which led me to my future business partner and career, and brought me to where I am today,” said Johnson.

Johnson feels strongly about supporting the school that nurtured him to become a successful entrepreneur. He also provided financial support to establish the “David A. Johnson Applied Econometrics and Analytics Fund” to support a dedicated professorship at the College of Business. He also participates in the school’s annual SAS Analytics Summit to provide mentorship and expertise.

About David Johnson: David Johnson got his start in business upon earning a BBA in Management and MIS from the University of West Georgia. From there, he continued his education, earning an MBA in Computer Information Systems from Georgia State University. He has held a variety of positions in the business world, and founded several companies, including his current business Cane Bay Partners VI, LLLP, one of the most well-known consulting and management companies in St. Croix. Johnson is skilled in many areas of business, with specialties including: call center operations, risk management, information technology, and marketing. In addition to his professional work, Johnson continues to give back and founded the charitable giving effort Cane Bay Cares in response to the 2017 hurricanes.

About Cane Bay Partners VI, LLLP: Cane Bay Partners VI, LLLP was formed in June 2009 and founded by internationally experienced business executives with many years of experience in the financial services industry. Focusing our efforts primarily in the financial services industry, our management consulting practice specializes in providing services to clients in need of sophisticated risk management models, debt collections organizations which require liquidation models and analytics, and portfolio management companies desiring a variety of services. More specifically, our practice has elected to specialize in three areas where we believe our core competencies reside: (1) management consulting (2) risk management/scorecard development and (3) service provider analysis.