Whether addressing 150 eager young business students at the Adam Smith Club Free Enterprise lecture symposium or leading capital campaigns for new building projects, Charlotte entrepreneur Jim Nisbet was actively involved with Campbell University for over 38 years. Nisbet died Friday, Dec.23, at the Stewart Health Center in Charlotte. A veteran of over 38 years on Campbell’s Presidential Board of Advisors, Nisbet served as chairman of the board for 20 years. In his professional life, he founded or co-founded over 15 companies, most of which sold and distributed mechanical equipment for industries in North and South Carolina. And in1983, he created the Nisbet Business Center, a property development and management company offering over 70,000 square feet of rental space. As a result of his philanthropy, the Nisbet Tennis Center was established at Campbell and the university received a gift of $700,000 to meet academic and facility needs. Nisbet co-chaired Campbell’s Challenge 2000 capital campaign and was chairman of the Foundation for the Carolinas in Charlotte. Among other honors, he received Campbell’s Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award and was made an Honorary Doctor of Laws. Nisbet was also named Director Emeritus of the Business Management Institute of the University of North Carolina School of Business. In addition, he was presented the Outstanding Philanthropist of the Year award by the Association of Fund Raising Professionals. “Jim Nisbet was an icon at Campbell University,” said Dr. Jack Britt, vice president for Institutional Advancement. “He was always interested in making Campbell one of the elite universities in the country. His leadership will be greatly missed.” Jim Nisbet is survived by his wife Betty; daughters Elizabeth Nisbet Miller and Lucinda Lucas and three grandchildren.
Campbell loses long time friend Jim Nisbet