College of Education and Behavioral Sciences News

At a special-called WKU Board of Regents meeting today (Sept. 25), the philanthropic naming of the new state-of-the-art Hilltopper Fieldhouse was approved as the Tim and Sarah Ford Fieldhouse in recognition of a $3 million gift from the Fords.

The 120,000-square-foot Tim and Sarah Ford Fieldhouse will be home to the WKU Forensics and E-Sports programs, as well as provide practice and training space for the Big Red Marching Band and Hilltopper Athletics.

WKU President Timothy C. Caboni said that the Tim and Sarah Ford Fieldhouse will serve as a place to celebrate the traditions of distinction for the programs to be housed there and will support their continued growth and success.

“Tim and Sarah Ford have a long history of support for WKU students and student-athletes, and their countless hours of volunteerism have opened doors and provided opportunities for many Hilltoppers,” President Caboni said. “Honoring the Fords through the naming of this facility that will provide the tools for innovation, learning, collaboration and success is a fitting recognition.”

Tim Ford shared that he and his wife are grateful to be able to support the fieldhouse facility, as they liked the idea of a space where several distinct but successful groups could come together to train and collaborate.

“We were thrilled once the ground was finally broken,” Tim Ford said. “When the opportunity to support the facility came about, it was an easy decision for both of us.”

Tim Ford came to the Hill in 1979 and excelled immediately on the football team. Ford said he had “the good fortune” to play for legendary Coach Jimmy Feix. He was a member of Coach Feix’s final conference champion team in 1980.

Ford earned CoSIDA Academic All-American First Team accolades in 1981, and he is still one of just 15 Hilltoppers – only the second at the time – to earn the distinction. His 171 career assisted tackles are currently eighth all-time in WKU program history. Ford was inducted into the W-Club Hall of Fame in 1999, and he was named to the WKU Football All-Century Team in 2018.

“We are deeply appreciative of this significant commitment from Tim and Sarah Ford,” said Todd Stewart, Director of Athletics. “They both have invested considerable time and resources into impacting the lives of our student-athletes. The personal concern they have for our student-athletes and the meaningful connections they routinely establish are noteworthy. They truly are difference makers and wonderful people, and it is very appropriate that their names will adorn this beautiful addition to our campus.”

“My roots are deep here at WKU, and I attribute much of my career success to the valuable lessons learned, both on the football field and in the classroom,” Tim Ford said. “I am a second-generation Hilltopper. My parents attended WKU in the late 1940s, and they would be thrilled that we are supporting the facility in this way.”

Tim Ford graduated from WKU in 1982 with a Bachelor of Science in Geology. After obtaining a master’s degree in Geology and Geophysics from Southern Illinois University, he went to a 35-year career as an exploration geoscientist, working for a number of oil companies, primarily in Houston, Texas.

Sarah Ford comes from a Texas football family with most of her family involved in the sport through the college level. Her father, brothers, brother-in-law and nephews all played at Baylor University, where she also graduated.

“Sarah’s strong support of the WKU Football program and the greater University certainly influenced her desire to fund the facility,” Tim Ford said. “Sarah considers herself a WKU ABC—an ‘Alumna by Choice.’”

He said the fieldhouse project appealed to the couple primarily because it will benefit a number of diverse programs.

“We feel the indoor facility demonstrates the University’s commitment to WKU’s future athletic and academic excellence,” Tim Ford said.

The Tim and Sarah Ford Fieldhouse will:

• Serve as the permanent home to the WKU Forensics program and provide the program with modern classroom, practice, office and competition space to allow it to continue its run of excellence as the most dominant collegiate speech and debate organization in the country.

• House the WKU E-Sports programs and teams and equip them with state-of-the-art competition space, practice pods and offices. 

• Become the new base for the Big Red Marching Band program with dedicated storage/support space for the band as well as a venue for year-round, all-weather practice.

• Include a new Baseball Clubhouse with Locker Room, Weight Room, Team Room and Coaches’ Offices.

• House a new baseball hitting facility with four batting cages and flexible multi-purpose space.

• Incorporate an 87,000-square-foot indoor training facility for use by the WKU Marching Band, WKU Athletics, Intramurals and the greater WKU community.

The Fords have graciously hosted numerous WKU events at their home in Franklin, Tenn., and have given their time to mentor students in both academic and athletic endeavors. In recognition of their support for scholarships, WKU Athletics and the Hilltopper Athletic Foundation, the Fords were recognized as the 2020 WKU Philanthropists of the Year.

For more information, contact WKU Philanthropy & Alumni Engagement at  philanthropy@wku.edu.

-- WKU –

Western Kentucky University prides itself on positioning its students, faculty and staff for long term success. As a student-centered, applied research university, WKU helps students expand on classroom learning by integrating education with real-world applications in the communities we serve. Our hilltop campus is located in Bowling Green, Kentucky, which was recently named by Reader’s Digest as one of the nicest towns in America, just an hour’s drive from Nashville, Tennessee.