Georgia Tech Athletics Donor Profile: Bill Poland

 • Alexander-Tharpe Fund Donor Profiles

Over the past two years, Bobby Dodd Stadium has been transformed into one of the most modern on-campus facilities in the nation. It's only appropriate that Bill Poland played a role in that, since he credits Georgia Tech for his own transformation.

Poland is now a successful west coast real estate developer and a valued member of the Georgia Tech family, but as a freshman from Texas in the early 1960's, he was quite unsure of himself when he arrived in Atlanta.

"I felt like a dork when I first showed up because I felt awkward and somewhat out of place," he recalled. "While at Tech, I kind of blossomed in the sense I became more self-assured and confident. I think my personality bubbled up to the surface.

"So Tech was a place that I really grew, going from a teenager to an adult."

Growing up in the Sputnik era, Poland was drawn to engineering due to his proficiency in mathematics. At Tech, he enrolled in the mechanical engineering program and found the curriculum very demanding.

"Georgia Tech was a place where the workload was so much heavier than what I was used to in high school and much heavier than what my friends were experiencing at other colleges," he said. "It created a need to mature in a hurry or to cave into the pressure. While the academics were difficult, the environment still allowed for the fun of being a student, and I had some tremendous times and great memories there."

Those memories include attending a number of football and basketball games, as well as participating in intramural sports. Poland was also president of both the senior class and his fraternity, Sigma Nu.

"I was class president only because the other fellow had to bail out because of grades," he said, downplaying the honor. "I was vice president, so I was elevated. It's not quite as impressive as it sounds."

Upon graduating in 1967, Poland began an engineering career after a stint in the Army Reserves. However, his connections to Tech helped steer him in another direction.

As a student, Poland had forged a relationship with Jim Dull, the longtime dean of students. Dull recognized that Poland's personality would be better suited to the business world rather than engineering, so he recommended that Poland pursue an MBA.

"Dean Dull was really instrumental in me going to Stanford," Poland stated. "He was a mentor throughout my years at Tech and still today. He was the one that really encouraged me to go onto business school."

Stanford brought Poland to the west coast, and he's been there ever since. He started his own commercial real estate firm, Bay West, in 1979. The company owns and operates gift and design centers as well as other types of commercial property in San Francisco and Seattle, and they are beginning to venture into apartments and condos in the Bay Area.

Despite being on the opposite end of the country, Poland's ties to Tech have remained strong. He has contributed to a number of projects on Georgia Tech's campus over the years, especially those honoring Dull. When the Building a Competitive Advantage program was initiated to fund the renovation of both Bobby Dodd Stadium and Russ Chandler Stadium, Poland offered his full support.

The construction efforts have completely rebuilt the baseball stadium and dramatically renovated and expanded the football stadium. Grant Field, originally built in 1913, now seats 55,000 spectators and features state-of-the-art locker room and support facilities for the football team.

Poland's assistance is recognized in the form of the Poland Family Gate, which greets visitors on the northwest corner of the stadium.

"Over the years, the athletic programs are what I have related to most," said Poland, who is a Platinum Life Member of the Alexander-Tharpe Fund. "It means a lot for me to be proud of the accomplishments of the various Tech teams."