TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — The University of Alabama’s Culverhouse College of Commerce announced six business professionals to be inducted into the Alabama Business Hall of Fame.
The inductees include Charles E. Adair, of Montgomery; Dr. James R. Andrews, of Birmingham; William R. Battle, of Tuscaloosa; Dr. Dorothy Davidson, of Huntsville; John D. Johns, of Birmingham; and Don Logan, of Birmingham.
They will be honored during the Alabama Business Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony Nov. 9 at the Haven in Birmingham.
Adair graduated from The University of Alabama with a degree in accounting and completed the Advanced Management Program at the Harvard Business School. He is the president of Kowaliga Capital, an investment management company, in Montgomery.
Adair is a member of the board of directors of Tech Data Corp., Torchmark Corp. and Rayonier Advanced Materials. He has been active in civic organizations having served on boards of the Montgomery Area Red Cross, United Way, Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce, Health System and Health Services Foundation at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, University of Alabama Culverhouse College of Commerce Board of Visitors and The University of Alabama President’s Cabinet.
Andrews received his bachelor’s from Louisiana State University and medical degree from Louisiana State University School of Medicine. He is one of the founding members of Andrews Sports Medicine and Orthopaedic Center and co-founder of the American Sports Medicine Institute, or AMSI, dedicated to injury prevention, education and research in orthopaedic and sports medicine.
Andrews serves as chairman and medical director of ASMI as well as president and chairman of the board of the Andrews Research and Education Foundation. He also serves as medical director and orthopaedic surgeon for Auburn University Intercollegiate Athletics, senior orthopaedic consultant for The University of Alabama and senior orthopaedic consultant for the Washington Redskins.
Battle holds degrees from The University of Alabama and The University of Oklahoma. Following his coaching career at The University of Tennessee, he founded Collegiate Licensing Co., creating the industry of collegiate licensing. When Battle sold the company to IMG, Collegiate Licensing Co. had earned over $800 million in royalties representing more than 200 colleges, universities, bowls and conferences.
Battle has been inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame and National Collegiate Licensing Association Hall of Fame. He is a founding member of the Crimson Tide Foundation Board and serves as president. Battle recently retired as the athletic director for The University of Alabama.
Davidson is the CEO and chairman of the board of directors of Davidson Technologies Inc. After receiving her Bachelor of Science, she began her career as a research mathematician with the United States Air Force at the Pentagon. Davidson then spent a number of years working with NATO countries in defense systems.
In 1992, Davidson relocated to Huntsville. In 2013, after the death of her husband, she became the CEO and chairman of the board for Davidson Technologies, where she grew the company in size and revenue from its beginning in 1996.
Davidson has remained supportive of the Huntsville community for 25 years. She personally pledged $5 million to the University of Alabama in Huntsville for the construction of an Innovator’s Center, funded the construction of the Davidson Center for Space Exploration at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center and pledged $5 million to Auburn University for their student engineering center.
Johns holds degrees from The University of Alabama, Harvard Law School and Harvard Business School. He was recently elected executive chairman of Protective Life Corp. Johns serves on the corporate boards of Regions Financial Corp., Genuine Parts Co. and Southern Company.
He has been actively engaged in community and philanthropic service, having served as the chairman of the Business Council of Alabama, the McWane Science Center, the Greater Alabama Council of the Boy Scouts of America and Birmingham Business Alliance, as well as being an emeritus trustee of The University of Alabama System.
Logan holds degrees from Auburn University and Clemson University and honorary doctorates from Auburn University, Clemson University and the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He served as CEO of Southern Progress, CEO of Time Inc. and chairman of Time Warner Media and Communications.
Logan and his family own the Birmingham Barons and Seek Publishing. In 2010, he and two partners acquired B.A.S.S., the world’s largest fishing organization, from ESPN. A respected civic leader, Logan is on the Executive Board of the Birmingham Business Alliance, is a founding member of the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute and has served on the boards of the Magazine Publishers Association and National Book Foundation.
The Alabama Business Hall of Fame was founded in 1973 by the Culverhouse College of Commerce Board of Visitors to honor individuals in business who have brought lasting fame to the state of Alabama. A 14-member board of directors establishes the criteria for nominations and governs the Hall of Fame. All candidates must meet the qualifications of being retired for a minimum of three years or be 65 years of age or older, prior to induction, if still active in their careers.
For more information about the Alabama Business Hall of Fame and 2017 Induction Ceremony, visit culverhouse.ua.edu/abhof.