Alumni News and Notes

AASU Announces New Executive Team Club Emphasizes Diversity on Campus

Precious Kamudzandu

The officers of the 2020-21 African American Student Union at Central Methodist University were announced in the fall, with senior Precious Kamudzandu once again leading the organization.

A nursing major from Kansas City, Kamudzandu also participates in CMU’s College Democrats.

“My favorite thing about AASU is all the new faces we get to meet,” she said. “I also enjoy meeting all the new, diverse personalities that AASU brings.”

Joining Kamudzandu on the executive team will be La’Kiah Wilson as vice president. Also a member of the class of 2021 and native of Kansas City, Wilson is majoring in criminal justice and political science. Aside from AASU, her campus involvement includes Civic Engagement, College Democrats, Mock Trial, Student Government Association (student life chair), and Metaphysical Club (secretary).

“One thing I love about being a leader of AASU is that it allows me to spread knowledge and understanding to my fellow peers,” said Wilson.

Chely Stratton, a junior biology (pre-med) major from Kansas City, will be this year’s secretary. Stratton is also involved with the chapel bands, Alpha Epsilon Delta, Beta Beta Beta, and College Democrats.

“My favorite thing about being a leader with AASU is the many opportunities that I have to learn from people with diverse backgrounds, as well as helping create a safe space to voice opinions and foster a welcoming community within this campus,” said Stratton.

This year’s treasurer for AASU is Marina Florido, another senior from Kansas City. In addition to her AASU role and majoring in political science and comparative religion and philosophy, Florido serves as the Metaphysical Club president, Mock Trial team captain, and College Democrats communications director and legislative agenda executive.

“The most rewarding part of being a leader with AASU is the emphasis placed on diversity,” Florido said. “Diversity enriches communities by producing a plurality of opinions based on differing perspectives. Thus, AASU highlights that diversity is a vital component of a strong campus community.”

Rounding out the executive team as this year’s public relations representative is Marchya Jackson. Jackson is a senior from Salisbury, Mo. She is majoring in sociology.

Amy Blair Shannon Peters

Peters, Blair Begin Term as Student Government President, VP Officers Hope to Provide ‘Normalcy’

Central Methodist University’s newest Student Government Association officers have an unprecedented task ahead of them in promoting student involvement while navigating a pandemic. But Shannon Peters and Amy Blair are up to the task.

Peters and Blair were selected as SGA president and vice president, respectively, in the spring and are now hard at work preparing safe and engaging activities for their fellow students.

Peters, a senior biology major from Waverly, Mo., called her position as president “a huge responsibility but a very big honor.”

“It’s my best opportunity to really have a voice and make a difference here on campus,” she said. “It would be great to look back and see that I accomplished something or that I offered something to the school that future students can appreciate years down the road.”

Blair, a junior majoring in biology and hailing from Maywood, Mo., also is excited to begin her stint as vice president, as she believes student government is a perfect segue into her goal of bringing empathy and compassion into real-world politics.

“I have always had a heart for community service and also the political side of things,” she said, adding, “I have always loved Fayette and treasure the experiences I have had here so far, and being a part of bringing that to a new group of students is amazing.”

Both officers are active on campus aside from their roles within SGA. Peters is in her fourth year as a varsity volleyball player and has been a member of Theta Chi Epsilon, Alpha Epsilon Delta, Beta Beta Beta, Champions of Character, and the Heart Athlete Student Association. Blair serves as a residential assistant in Holt Hall and is a member of Zeta Psi Lambda.

As for their goals within SGA this year, both agree that providing “a sense of normalcy” is one of the most important things they can do for their fellow students.

“We’re going to try to make this school year as normal as we can and make it a good experience for people,” said Peters. “I know we’re encouraging people to stay [socially] distant, but at the same time we want to encourage people to be active on campus while also being safe. It’s a hard balance to find, but I’m hoping we can figure out some ways to do that throughout both semesters.”

Alumni News & Notes

Central Unites Us 2020 is winding down, and in the words of the Grateful Dead, “What a long, strange trip it’s been.” I don’t think any of us could have predicted how crazy this year would be. I hope that this note finds you and yours healthy and whole. I know we were all disappointed that in-person Homecoming was cancelled this year. However, Bill Sheehan, Stasia Sherman, and the Advancement team really did an outstanding job of pivoting and coming up with a super-creative approach to make Homecoming a virtual event. It was great to have Coffee with the President, watch an exciting game, and even do a little shopping in the bookstore. The decision to cancel in-person Homecoming this year wasn’t a decision made lightly. It was the right thing to do to protect our students, alumni, faculty, staff, and townspeople.

After a year of pandemic, economic challenges, a contentious election, and so many other frustrations, disappointments, divisions, and setbacks, I want to remind you of the thing that unites us, Central. As you find new ways to celebrate the holidays and connect with friends and family, hold the spirit of Central in your heart.

Peace, safety, and love,

Laura Blair, Class of 1986 President, Alumni Association Board of Directors

1950s David Starkey ‘56 received his BME (voice) and LHD from Central. He has also received several other degrees in music from Indiana University. He’s appeared in operas, on Broadway, in Broadway tours, on all major TV networks, on recordings, and in concerts in the U.S. and Europe. He has two former students at the Metropolitan Opera, and a former student is vice president and COO of the Cleveland Institute of Music.

1960s Robert Britton ‘67 received the Federal Aviation Administration’s most prestigious award, the Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award.

1970s Alan Yount ‘70 published his 143rd poem in the spring of 2020 in JerryJazzMusician 23rd poem published there.The title of the poem was “Night Train.” ministry serving the Missouri area United Methodist Church. He coauthored a new book, Growing Through Disaster – Financial and Trauma Recovery Tools for Your Faith Community, with Abingdon Press.

John Owen ‘71 started his law enforcement career as an ATF special agent in Des Moines, Iowa. After 16 years with ATF, he transferred into TIGTA (Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration) as the resident agent in charge of Iowa, Nebraska, and South Dakota and served another 16 years prior to retiring. After two years of retirement, the Dept. of Homeland Security requested that he come out of retirement to take the position of assistant federal security director for law enforcement for Iowa. He served in this position for an (a national online jazz journal). This was his

additional four years before retiring. He still resides in the Des Moines area with his wife of 49 years. They have three children and nine grandchildren.

Parl Hummel ‘73 After Central Methodist University, Eastern Kentucky University, University of Cincinnati, University of Missouri—St. Louis, and a 42-year career at McDonnell Douglas, Boeing, and Booz Allen Hamilton, Parl has begun retirement. Since his retirement, he has toured the US western states national parks for 30 days in an RV and toured Belize, Greece, and Cuba. He plans to resume his travels when the pandemic is under control.

Linda Brown ‘74 retired from the University Hospital in 2017. She is currently working part-time as a medical transcriptionist for Occupational Medicine of Mid-Missouri.

Richard Parker ‘74 was elected in June to serve a six-year term as a member of the Board of Trustees for State Fair Community College in Sedalia, Mo.

Robert “Bob” Schoene ‘74 retired and shares gardening duties with Annette. When not gardening, they are renewing a 114-year old farm house and “front porch sitting.”

Donald Pesek ‘74 retired in March after having served for 30 years as director of audit and rating services for Cass Information Systems, Inc.

Mark Harbison ‘76 will retire from Commercial Trust Bank on December 31, 2020, after 44 years of service.

1980s John Schultz ‘80 retired from State Farm Insurance on November 1, 2020, after almost 37 years of service.

Timothy Jackman ‘81 was appointed to Commercial Trust Company’s Board of Directors.

Cheryl Lynn (Wofford) Hill ‘82 received the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award by Marquis Who’s Who.

Rob Caldwell ‘84 and Kim (Stoll) ‘82 became grandparents on May 13, 2020. Louis Joseph Caldwell was born in Tulsa, Okla. to their son, Tyler, and daughter-in-law, Caitlyn.

Tony Whitson ‘84 is the new superintendent for the Salisbury R-IV School District in Salisbury, Mo.

Chairman of the Central Methodist University Board of Trustees Tad Perry ‘65, right, with alumnus Dan Widhalm ’85 in Spearfish, South Dakota, representing their alma mater and staying safe with Central Eagles facemasks. Widhalm was a star basketball player at Central and is a 1996 inductee into the Hairston Hall of Fame. A group of Mokers masked up for golf recently in Springdale, Arkansas near Mark ’83 and Leslie ’84 Driver’s home. From left, Terry Henderson ’83, Terry Ohlms ’83, Mark Driver ’83, Larry Layden ’83, Tony Livingston ’82 and Ron Mills ’83 in Farmington, Mo. Mark and his son, Griffin, demonstrated a genuine commitment to student master’s degree in special education. Kenneth Oliver ‘93 is the vice president of Kimberly (Hill) Wayland ‘99 has announced that her husband, Dale “Big Daddy” Wayland received a long-awaited kidney transplant. He is doing well without any complications

and no signs of rejection. 2000s Daren Dean ‘01 has a Civil War novel, The Black Harvest, forthcoming from the University of West Alabama’s Livingston Press in fall 2021. His latest short story, “The Ears Of Lyndon Baines Johnson”, is in the current issue of Louisiana Literature as a special online feature. He was an English Fellow at Central Methodist University ’01. Currently, he is an assistant professor of English at Lincoln University in Jefferson City, Mo.

Cheris Whitney ‘02 is one of 17 students who joined the Doctor of Education program

at Webster University this fall. Lindy Hern ‘03 authored a book on the history of the grassroots movement for health care reform in the United States, Single Payer Healthcare Reform.

Jenny Martin ‘03 is the director for web and digital communication at the University of

Mary Ella Thomasson ‘85 was elected to the Northwest R-1 School Board on June 2, 2020.

Fred Smith’s ‘85 2016 Boonville baseball team was voted KRES’s Baseball Team of the Decade by voters at Centralmoinfo.com.

1990s Dori (Thomas) Waggoner ‘92 was the 2020 recipient of the Carolyn and Tad Perry Fellow Award. The Carolyn and Tad Perry Fellow Award goes annually to a faculty member who has experiences, growth, and achievement beyond normal teaching and mentoring engagement.

Institutional Advancement, Admissions, and Marketing at Kansas Wesleyan University in Salina, Kan. Mark Phillips ‘95 is an associate pastor of children’s ministries at the First Baptist Church provided music and songs to the Women’s Connection meeting on July 14, 2020, at the Farmington Presbyterian Church.

Nathan “Nate” King’s ‘96 2019 Salisbury Lady Panther’s softball team was voted KRES Team of the Decade by voters at Centralmoinfo.com. Nathan stepped down as varsity head softball coach to be head coach of the Salisbury Junior High softball team and coach his daughter.

Jessica (Beckwith) Creedon ‘97 graduated from the University of Southern Maine with a Missouri– St. Louis.

Travis Day ‘97 is head basketball coach at Hayti High school in Hayti, Mo., where his team won the conference championship. Margaret (Morris) Richard ‘04 received the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching.

Robert “Rob” Cowsert Jr. ‘05 is currently working for Subaru of America. He oversees the body fit team and makes sure that all vehicles are meeting a high-quality standard. He currently lives in Lafayette, Ind., with his wife, Melissa, and their 7-year-old daughter, Lexi.

Kathryn (Ramsey) Bachtel ‘06 was named the new head softball coach for the Salisbury Lady Panthers softball team.

Sarah (Wehrman) Hessenius ‘06 received the Teacher of the Year award at Spring Branch Elementary school in Independence, Mo. She was also promoted to chair of the Elementary Music Department for the Independence School District.

Robert “Deacon” Windsor ‘93 is the new principal at Mark Twain High School in Center, Mo. Krista (Nelson) Greenwell ‘99 was named Popular Bluff Early Childhood Center Teacher of the Year for 2020. Elizabeth “Libby” Wood ‘06 was elected to the Board of Trustees for the Madison Medical Center in Fredericktown, Mo.

Kylar Broadus ’85 spent some time at his alma mater this fall shooting a TEDWomen Talk on his non-aggressive battle against transgender and African-American bias in the courtroom. Broadus is a pioneer attorney in trans rights and additionally has more than two decades of experience teaching at a historically black college/university. September 3, 2020, in Springfield, Mo.

David Hutchison ‘07 was elected to the Board of Directors for the American Red Cross of Greater Arkansas.

Kaniela Aiona ‘08 is the men’s basketball coach basketball coach at South Shelby High School

at the University of Hawaii at Hilo in Hilo, Hawaii.

John Bodkins ‘08 is an assistant soccer coach with the Southern Boone boys’ soccer team. John Coleman ‘12 is a registered nurse in Chicago, Ill.

Nancy Sikobe ‘08 is the volleyball coach at Saint Mary of the Woods College in Indiana.

Cory Cuzan ’09 and Esther Macias Cuzan ’11 met 10 years ago at CMU. They now have three children and live in Kansas City.

2010s Hannah (Kiddoo) Frevert ‘10 received the Fisher Family Good Samaritan Award, selected by Redemption Inside the Walls and the News Tribune. Zeb Wallace ‘12 is the new assistant principal

Andrew Green ‘10 was hired to be the partFair Community College in Sedalia, Mo.

Sam McMahon ‘10 is the assistant men’s basketball coach at Southeast Missouri State University in Cape Girardeau, Mo. Joseph Taylor White ‘11 received the Diamond 9 award at the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame Baseball and Softball Luncheon

Dalton Armontrout ‘12 is the new boys’ in Shelbina, Mo.

the Labor and Birth Department at Mercy Hospital in St. Louis, Mo.

Margaret “Maggie” Gebhardt ‘12 is the communications and marketing assistant director for Accurity Valuation, LLC, in

Evan Lavery ‘12 is an assistant coach at Emporia State and was named one of the 50 impactful D2 assistant coaches in NCAA Division II men’s basketball.

time assistant men’s basketball coach at State at Ozark Middle School in Ozark, Mo.

Addie Layne ‘13 has been selected to co-chair the Junior League of Kansas City, Missouri’s largest fundraiser Holiday Mart. The fourday shopping event benefits women- and children-focused philanthropic work in the Kansas City metro area. Zachary Russell ‘13 was one of 28 state employees who graduated from the Missouri Leadership Academy – a program that develops the next generation of state government leaders.

Nicole Schulz ‘13 joined the Sports Medicine Department at DePaul University in Chicago, Ill., were she will be an assistant director and will be the primary sports medicine contact for the women’s basketball program.

Samuel Gaddy ‘15 recently obtained a Master of Arts in music and will be teaching 6-12 band and choir at Santa Fe R-X School in Alma, Mo.

Collin Sizemore ‘15 is a coach for the Truman Patriots football team at Truman High School in Independence, Mo.

Vivian “Vicky” Whited ‘15 is a case manager for The Kitchen Inc. in Springfield, Mo.

Gretchen (Nanneman) Atkinson ‘16 is a paraprofessional at the Salisbury Elementary School in Salisbury, Mo.

Stacey Easter ‘16 is the Park Hills Council member for Ward 2 in Park Hills, Mo.

Savannah Schaefer ‘16 is the new events coordinator for the admissions office at Central Methodist University in Fayette, Mo.

Dana (Thompson) Goosen ‘17 was named Staff of the Year at State Fair Community College in Sedalia, Mo.

Hannah Selsor ‘17 is a 4th-6th grade math teacher at the Salisbury Elementary School in Salisbury, Mo.

Mickayla Spaulding ‘17 accepted the position of head of marketing and public relations for Post 0218 Pediatric Therapies in Arkansas.

Melody (Hanson) Stegeman ‘17 graduated in May with her Doctorate in Physical Therapy from Southwest Baptist University in Bolivar, Mo.

Scott Stegeman ‘17 graduated in May of 2019 with his Master of Science in athletic training from Missouri State University in Springfield, Mo., and is working as the head athletic trainer at Nixa High School.

Camille Dovin and Brad Burkhardt were engaged September 26 in Linn Memorial church this fall – at the very spot they met during chapel.

DaJonee Hale ‘18 signed a one-year contract on August 13, 2020, to play professional basketball in Bamberg, Germany.

Kiona Sinks ‘18 was the recipient of the 2020 Gold Stevie Award for “Multicultural Communications Campaign of the Year” from The Stevie Awards for Women in Business program.

Aubrey Thompson ‘18 is the English language arts teacher at the Intermediate School and Abilene Elementary School for the Valley Center Unified School District in Valley Center, Kan.

Turner Middendorf ‘19 is the interim residence life director for the 20-21 academic year at Newman University in Wichita, Kan.

Joseph Penno ‘19 is the new sports information director at Dodge City Community College.

Abby Roach ‘19 is the third-grade teacher at the Salisbury Elementary School in Salisbury, Mo.

2020s Corneille “Cori” Bryan ‘20 is a music teacher at Hosea, Carden Park, and Charles A. Lindbergh elementary schools in St. Joseph, Mo. Chelsey and Layne Crump were married June 13, 2020, at Linn Memorial United Methodist Church. Layne ’19 is employed as an admissions counselor at CMU. Chelsey is studentteaching at Southern Boone Middle School and will graduate in December. The couple lives in Columbia.

Rachel Buyck Hahn ‘20 is now the digital marketing assistant at Rokusek Marketing in Quincy, Ill.

Katherine “Kadee” Dempsey ‘20 is attending New York Institute of Technology College of Osteopathic Medicine in Jonesboro, Ark., studying to receive a Doctorate in Osteopathic Medicine.

Matt Fohn ‘20 is now the head cheerleading coach at Lebanon R-111 High School in Lebanon, Mo.

Brenna Germann ‘20 is attending the University of Missouri School of Law studying to receive a Juris Doctor (J.D.).

Devin Henderson ‘20 is attending Cleveland University in Kansas City, Mo., studying to receive her Doctor of Chiropractic degree.

Colin Horn ‘20 is attending Southeastern University in Lakeland, Fla., studying to receive an MBA.

Tayler Huffman ‘20 is an early childhood special education teacher with the Crystal City School District in Crystal City, Mo.

Rian Soares Marques ‘20 signed a three-year team.

Kate Randolph ‘20 is a patient care associate in the Medical Progressive Care unit at Mercy Hospital in Creve Coeur, Mo. Taylor Rumsey ‘20 is now a project accountant at Black and Veatch in Overland Park, Kan.

Regan Sullivan ’20 of Slater, Mo., is now an autism specialist with Easter Seals Midwest in Columbia, Mo.

Births, Marriages, Engagements

2020s Rachel Buyck Hahn ’20 and Jordan Hahn were married August 8, 2020.

2010s Brittanee Jacobs ’12 and Joey Rinehart were married August 8, 2020.

Novy Foland II ’15 and wife Valerie (Kimball) ’15 welcomed daughter Emery Nicole on August 12, 2020.

Julia Weber ’16 and Bryce Oswald were married January 25, 2020.

Catherine (Catie) Dovin ’19 and Gabriel deal with the Kansas City Comets soccer

Dudley were married May 2, 2020.

2000s Molly (Teague) Mereness ’08 and husband Bryce welcomed daughter McKinley on March 2, 2020.