COOKEVILLE, Tenn. (July 02, 2004) — Tennessee Tech University’s College of Business Administration has awarded this year’s Outstanding Business Leadership Award to Cookeville’s Ron and Melinda Swann.

The couple owns the Collins Manufacturing Co. Founded in 1983, the business designs, manufactures, markets and distributes salon equipment to beauty and barbershops and spas throughout the United States.

Ron and Melinda Swann are both graduates of Cookeville High School and 1971 TTU graduates. At TTU, Melinda studied French and English, while Ron earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics. He returned to the university to pursue a master’s in business administration, which he earned in 1980.

Members of the First United Methodist Church, the couple has three sons, Ben and Robert, who both also work at Collins, and Jeff, who teaches history at Cookeville High School.

The Outstanding Business Leadership Award is given annually to recognize individuals or organizations who have made exceptional contributions in the field of business.

Nominations may be submitted by any member of the College of Business Administration Foundation, and selection of the award is made by the College of Business Administration Foundation’s Awards Selection Committee.

--Tracey LeFevre
This information posted 6 July 2004