Planting Seeds: Chapmans Establish a Visionary Endowment for UWG Athletics Share this page
The Chapman and Fulford families are pillars in the west Georgia region having established deep roots and community commitments – benefitting the University of West Georgia and the greater community with their involvement, businesses and philanthropic pursuits. They recently expanded their commitments by establishing the Josh and Andrea Chapman Athletic Visionary Endowment.
Josh and Andrea (Fulford) both grew up in Carrollton and saw UWG as an extension of their backyards – riding bikes and playing on campus. Both of their parents expanded businesses in the area as they grew up, and while they moved away to attend college, they moved back to raise their own family in the same community. Josh is now a principal at RaLin and Linco Companies, and he serves as the chair of the UWG Foundation Board of Trustees. Andrea, whose parents founded RaLin, is a principal at the company.
Growing up here, they saw UWG transition academically from a college to a state university, to now a comprehensive university, and in 2024, they saw the difference that transitioning to Division I made not only for UWG Athletics but for the entire community. When considering how they wanted to give back to UWG, athletics was a clear choice.
“When establishing this endowment, we wanted to give to where it would help the university the most,” Josh explained. “Athletics is the front door to UWG, and it is integral to campus life. Through athletics, UWG invites a wide variety of people to the university, and that invitation plants a seed of UWG being a positive place not only for students but the community.”
The endowment is the first of its kind and will provide programmatic and scholarship support to UWG Athletics in perpetuity, which will help UWG strengthen its commitment to recruitment and retention of high-caliber student-athletes, elevate the student experience and increase the university’s visibility as it continues to compete on the national stage in Division I.
“Josh and Andrea care deeply about this community, and they bring that same care and conviction to UWG,” said Allyson Bretch ’14, vice president for university advancement and CEO of UWG’s philanthropic foundations. “What makes this gift especially meaningful is their commitment to creating opportunities for student-athletes they may never meet, but whose futures they can help shape. I am deeply grateful for their trust, their leadership and the example they set through their generosity. This endowment will carry that commitment forward for generations.”
When creating the Josh and Andrea Chapman Athletic Visionary Endowment, the Chapmans shared that they wanted to lead by example, and while athletics holds a special place in their hearts, they hope that other community members will reflect on what parts of UWG are important to them and give back to areas they personally feel drawn to.
For more information about how you can impact UWG through an endowment, scholarship or annual giving, please visit UWG’s Give West page.