Class Notes

ACHIEVEMENTS

1960s ____________

LOWELL JOHNSON ’64 was honored in July for his career in public service by the Greenbrier County Airport Authority (GCAA). Appointed to the GCAA in 2010, Johnson served the group as chairman for nine years. He has also been assistant secretary for ports in the West Virginia Department of Transportation. Dr. Johnson taught in Greenbrier County schools and at Fairmont State and Bluefield State colleges. He has also served on the West Virginia Board of Education as president and vice president.

JANE CONGDON ’66

is enjoying continued success with her book “How the WILD EFFECT Turned Me into a Hiker at 69: An Appalachian Trail Adventure”. The book has gone into a second printing and has received two awards: An American BookFest nonfiction award and five stars from Readers’ Favorite. In 2019 this popular work was a finalist for an Ohioana Book Award.

1980s ____________

CHARLOTTE LUSK ’84 has been named Wyoming County Teacher of the Year. This is the second time that she has received the recognition during her 35-year teaching career. She was also selected for the top honor in 2012. Lusk is currently a first grade teacher at Mullens Elementary. She has also taught at Baileysville Grade and Herndon Consolidated, having spent time in kindergarten through seventh grade classrooms. After receiving a bachelor’s degree from Concord in elementary education with a specialization in early childhood education, Lusk went on to earn a master’s degree in speech communication from West Virginia University, and a reading endorsement/ remedial reading certification from the West Virginia College of Graduate Studies.

KEVIN J.

GIVEN ’89 has been elected to the WVU Foundation Board of Directors. He will serve a three-year term. Given is chief operating officer and partner of the Quail Valley Golf Club in Vero Beach, Fla. Since receiving his bachelor’s degree from Concord, Given has enjoyed a successful career in the hospitality industry for more than three decades.

1990s ____________

LORI WILSON ’94 completed an eight-year tenure as the athletic director at Keyser High School this summer. Wilson earned a degree in political science at Concord while playing on the tennis team. She also holds a master’s degree from West Virginia University. After working at Frostburg State University, Wilson has served as a substitute teacher in Mineral County since 2008. She embarked on her athletic director assignment in 2012.

2000s ____________

JEFFREY YEAGER ’10 received his Ph.D. in English at West Virginia University in May. His dissertation is “Prescribing the Profession: Representations of Medical Professionalization Debates in American Literary Forms: 1830-1940”.

MORGAN HYPES ’15 has joined Hale Family Dentistry in Oak Hill as an associate dentist. Morgan graduated as the valedictorian of Midland Trail High School’s Class of 2012. She received a bachelor's degree in Biology (Pre-Med) from Concord, graduating Cum Laude. At Concord, she was a member of Alpha Sigma Alpha, the cheer squad and the soccer team. She continued her education at the WVU School of Dentistry and graduated this spring. A dedicated volunteer, Morgan completed more than 200 hours of community service while she pursued her degrees.

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Wes McKinney ’13 Honored with Excellence in Communications Award

Wes McKinney ’13 has been named the recipient of the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches’ Association (USTFCCCA) Excellence in Communication Award for Division II. McKinney is the Sports Information Director for the Mountain Lions.

The Excellence in Communications Award recognizes those athletics communications representatives at conferences and/or schools who have committed to outstanding coverage and support of collegiate cross country. Winners were selected by the USTFCCCA Communications Staff after a nomination period.

“I would like to thank Concord Director of Athletics Kevin Garrett and President Kendra Boggess for the opportunity to work at Concord as a full-time employee for six years now," McKinney said. “As an alum of the university, Concord has always and will always hold a special place in my heart. I’d like to thank Concord head men’s and women’s cross country and track and field coach Mike Cox for nominating me for this prestigious award. Lastly, I would like to thank the student-athletes from all sports who make this job very enjoyable with their success in competition and in the classroom.”

Not long after the indoor season ended and the outdoor season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, McKinney launched a two-part series entitled “Inside the Numbers” where he took a closer look at each team’s performances during the indoor season. He included numerous marks from a number of athletes in order to give a broad look at the season and not just through the guise of the stars.

All the while, McKinney produced Senior Spotlight features on YouTube for spring-sport athletes that had their seasons and career cut short, where fans can get to know those athletes who helped shape the teams during their careers on campus 15 to 20 minutes at a time. This doesn't just go for track & field, but all of the other sports, too, as McKinney is the only SID in town.

“Wes has done an incredible job promoting our sport and in this pandemic that we are going through, he has gone above and beyond to promote our sport even more,” Cox said in his nomination for McKinney. “I feel like Wes is very deserving of this award and I hope you strongly consider him.”

To help promote the sports of cross country and track & field further, McKinney was selected by the Mountain East Conference to broadcast the 2019 MEC Cross Country Championship in Wheeling, W.Va. It was the first time the MEC broadcasted the cross country championship.

The USTFCCCA Excellence in Communications dates back to 2014 and is given out to cross country and track & field sports information directors at the end of the cross country and outdoor track & field seasons. McKinney is the first MEC SID to garner the accolade while being the third SID in the Atlantic Region along with Slippery Rock’s Jon Holtz and St. Augustine’s Anthony Jeffries.

As an alum of CU, McKinney was a four-year athlete for Cox on the men’s cross country and track & field team from 2009-13.