Hendrix Magazine - 2013 Spring by Hendrix College

The Hendrix College Magazine Spring 2013 Volume 25, Number 2 Chief Communications Officer Frank Cox ’76 cox@hendrix.edu Editor Helen Plotkin plotkin@hendrix.edu Managing Editor Rob O’Connor ’95 Art Director/Designer Joshua Daugherty Staff Photographer Joshua Daugherty Alumnotes Editor Maleele Choongo ’15 Hendrix Magazine is published by Hendrix College, 1600 Washington Avenue, Conway, Arkansas 720323080. This magazine is published for Hendrix College alumni, parents of students and friends. Permission is granted to reprint material from this magazine provided credit is given and a copy of the reprinted material is sent to the Editor. Postmaster, please send form 3579 to Office of Marketing Communications, Hendrix College, 1600 Washington Ave., Conway, AR 72032-3080 (501) 505-2932 Fax (501) 450-4553 Alumnotes submission deadlines: Spring Issue: Feb. 1 Fall Issue: Sept. 1

28 On the Air Photo by Joshua Daugherty

Keeping the liberal arts alive

Printed on paper containing 10% post-consumer recycled content with inks containing agri-based oils. Please Recycle.

Liberal arts education is very much alive at Hendrix. The accomplishments of our faculty, students and alumni make clear that Hendrix continues to prepare students for success. But private liberal arts colleges face ongoing questions about their relevancy in American higher education. The cover story in this issue of Hendrix Magazine celebrates the value of the liberal arts and the vital role of colleges like Hendrix. As Mark Twain might say, reports of our death are greatly exaggerated.

Saying Farewell

After 12 fast-paced years, President J. Timothy Cloyd says it’s time for new leadership

Stayin’ alive

Successful Hendrix alumni help dispel rumors of the death of the liberal arts

Hot for Teaching

Former teacher Ashley Harden Hill ’02 finds home as tutoring business franchise owner

Banking on Success

Recent graduate Jordan Suydam ’11 scores dream job as a financial analyst at Stephens, Inc.

Rocket Man

Chuck Chalfant ’81 takes lab lessons to another level with Space Photonics

Place Makers

Julie Puryear Crouch ’00 and Cathleen Staggs McFarlin ’00 make child’s play of small business ownership

Talkin’ Biz

Roby Brock ’88 builds statewide media source for business and politics

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Alumni News Alumnotes At Home at Hendrix Campus News Faculty News Hendrix Through Time

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In Memoriam Inside Perspective Marriages New Children The Village at Hendrix

Advocatin’ Odyssey

Maia Yang ’13 saw the world through her Hendrix Odyssey … and that’s just the first step

Journeys’ End

Hendrix faculty collaborate to create new interdisciplinary course for freshmen

inside perspective

Provost Robert L. Entzminger Provost Robert L. Entzminger answers questions about his decade at Hendrix and the future and value of liberal arts education.

A: Let me begin with what hasn’t changed: they are still as intellectually adventuresome and passionate about their studies as ever, a joy to teach and to work with in other capacities. I think today’s students are more aware that opportunities are likely to be harder to come by immediately upon graduation than they were in the past, but they have also been very creative and proactive in thinking about “gap year” plans that will help them position themselves to pursue their careers when they are ready for graduate school or to move into a career-path job. Q: What new trends in higher education have captured your attention? A: The obvious answer here is all the means of educational delivery that new technologies are making available. They may allow us to accomplish our goals more effectively, maybe even more efficiently, but our job is not just to transfer information but to inform the minds and characters of our students, and that will still require face-to-face contact with professors engaging students in the central issues of the discipline, and the kind of personal interaction with other students that are best acquired in a residential liberal arts setting. As Yeats put it, “Education is not so much about filling a bucket as lighting a fire.” Technology can help us light the fire, but at the end of the day, it’s only another tool to help us accomplish that goal. Q: What do you consider to be the most significant obstacle Hendrix has overcome during the College’s rise to national prominence over the past decade?

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Photo by Bob Handelman

Q: You’ve been Provost of Hendrix for a decade now. During that time, what changes have you observed in Hendrix students? Do you find them more or less focused on preparation for a career today than in 2002?

A: Externally, our biggest obstacle has been regionalism, the conviction on the part of the rest of the country that high quality college education with few exceptions is available only at a handful of elite institutions on either coast. Internally it’s been diffidence, the unwillingness to recognize just how distinctive and valuable Hendrix is, and to say so on every occasion. Q: What do you consider to be the next decade’s most significant obstacle to Hendrix’s continued growth and success? A: There’s a pervasive climate of suspicion in the country just now about the value of higher education in general and of liberal arts education in particular that we are going to have to address, both collectively and in individual institutions. With regard to institutions like Hendrix, the temptations are complacency and failure of nerve, but neither of those is in the DNA of the Hendrix I know. Q: Today, we hear people saying that a liberal arts degree has little value; it won’t help you get a job in this tough economy. How do you respond to such comments?

A: It’s true that we don’t often see “Help Wanted—Philosophy Majors Only” signs in the windows these days, but in fact, we never did. Except for a few high demand careers that require a great deal of specialized training, jobs are scarce for everybody. What gives liberal arts majors an advantage is precisely the adaptability that majors who are more narrowly and vocationally trained don’t have. We just need to do a better job of helping our students identify the strengths and qualities they can bring to the job and showing how they meet the needs of the prospective employer. Q: What makes a liberal arts degree relevant today? A: A liberal arts degree is relevant today for precisely the same reason it has always been. It’s ultimately the most practical degree, not only in terms of developing the intellectual skills that form the foundation for success in virtually all career paths, but also in terms of helping individuals cultivate talents and define principles that will allow them to lead rich and full lives as active members of a community.

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campus news

Campus News Smooth Transition

Imagi-Nation Hendrix College was recently invited to join Imagining America: Artists and Scholars in Public Life. A consortium of 90 colleges, Imaging America’s mission is to advance “knowledge and creativity through publicly engaged scholarship that draws on humanities, arts, and design … [and to] catalyze change in campus practices, structures, and policies that enables publicly engaged artists and scholars to thrive and contribute to community action and revitalization.” This fall, four Hendrix faculty members attended an Imagining America conference in New York City. Faculty attending the conference included Dr. Jay Barth ’87 (politics), Dr. John Krebs (music), Ann Muse ’83 (theatre arts), and Maxine Payne (art). “Our work will be to foster relationships between the academy and the community to facilitate learning for our students and to do public good,” said Dr. Krebs. Krebs said the group is “still processing” the possibilities but saw some intriguing examples at the New York conference. Some of the projects they learned about included one that measured the local economic impact of arts events, a community project that allowed students to experience in concrete terms abstract concepts that they had discussed in class, and a course on tango dance and culture that familiarized students with how the arts relate to wider cultural issues. “I think it’s possible to have wide range of activities based on their goals,” added Krebs.

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Photo by Jim Wiltgen

W. Ellis Arnold III ’79, executive vice president, general counsel, and dean of institutional advancement, has been named acting president of Hendrix, following the resignation of Dr. J. Timothy Cloyd [see page 11 for more information on Dr. Cloyd]. Arnold earned a juris doctor degree from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock William H. Bowen School of Law and was a private practice attorney from 1982 to 1990. He returned to Hendrix as vice president of development and general counsel in 1990. In 1996, he became president of Lambuth University in Jackson, Tenn., and in 2004 was named president of Pulaski Academy in Little Rock, a position he held until rejoining Hendrix as executive vice president in 2008. Arnold has worked directly under three Hendrix presidents — Dr. Joe Hatcher, Dr. Ann Die, and Dr. Cloyd — and served twice as acting president. Arnold will oversee the day-to-day college operations and strategic planning during a national search for Dr. Cloyd’s successor.

Civil Rights Sightseeing

Ten Hendrix students joined Dean of Students Ten Hendrix students attended the 3rd Annual Dean’s Jim Wiltgen on a fall Civil Rights trip in the fall: Kathryn Armstrong ’14, break trip to explore Lyndsey Czapansky ’14, Jonathan Howard ’13, Eliza- the historic sites of the beth Kasper ’15, JillAnn Meunier ’14, Didier Muvan- Civil Rights Movement. dimwe ’13, Jill Nguyen ’15, Rachel Thomas ’14, Neelam Vyas ’13, and Maia Yang ’13. The trip was funded jointly by Student Senate and the Dean of Student’s Office. The group visited the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, Tenn.; the historic 16th Street Baptist Church and the Civil Rights Institute in Birmingham, Ala.; the Rosa Parks Museum, the Civil Rights Memorial, and the state capital in Montgomery, Ala.; the National Park Interpretive Center in Lowndes County, Ala.; and several sites in Selma, Ala.

Model students The Hendrix College Model U.N. team received two awards at the 2012 National Model U.N. Conference in Washington, D.C. The team delegation was led by Eric Lew ’13, a mathematics major from Houston, Texas, and Mitch Goist ’13, an international relations major from Boise, Idaho. Paul Depre ’13, an economics major from Oak Lawn, Ill., and

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campus news

Jacob Porter ’13, an international relations major from Austin, Texas, won Outstanding Delegation for their work on the Security Council. The entire Hendrix team also won an honorable mention award for its representation of India at the conference. The team’s trip was underwritten with support from Hendrix student government and the Department of Politics and International Relations.

Redesigning men Hendrix won the Ektron Site of the Year Award for the redesigned Hendrix website. Director of web applications Jay Burling ’03 and Josh Daugherty, lead designer in the Office of Marketing Communications, accepted the award on behalf of the College at a conference in Washington, D.C.

The Hendrix website is the 2012 Ektron Site of the Year. The award, announced at the Synergy Conference in Washington, D.C., was accepted by Jay Burling ’03, director of web applications in the Office of Technology Services, and Josh Daugherty, lead designer in the Office of Marketing Communications at Hendrix. Daugherty was invited to speak about how he incorporated Responsive Web Design in the new Hendrix site. Nearly 50 entries were nominated, from which 19 semi-finalists were selected. Among the five finalists were Hendrix, CHEP, Behringer Harvard, Houston Grand Opera, and Rawlings Sporting Goods Company. The redesigned Hendrix website, launched in spring 2012, was touted by Ektron, a content management service, as a model of responsive web design. The site executes different content queries based on the maximum width of a visitor’s display. The result is that site visitors

see content arranged to fit their screens, making it easy to navigate through the pages and access the information that interests them. “Our goal has always been to build our website in a manner that makes it as easy as possible for our audience to find what interests them most, no matter what device they are using,” said Burling. “Our utilization of responsive web design in the new site is just the latest example of that.” Hendrix has more than 650 Ektron CMS users including faculty and staff members of the College and over 11,000 membership users including current students, alumni, parents, and other Hendrix community members.

The Good Shepherd Hendrix recently became a member institution in the Shepherd Higher Education Consortium on Poverty. The 16-member consortium has its roots in the poverty studies work at Washington and Lee University. Each member school commits to developing academic coursework dedicated to preparing students for an intensive summer internship in poverty-related work at a number of sites around the country that is accompanied by two summer workshops for students. The internship experience is then followed by a later project back on campus that serves as a capstone experience. Hendrix philosophy professor Dr. Chris Campolo will lead the development of curricular pieces on campus, while assistant career services director and internship coordinator Leigh Lassiter-Counts ’01 will be the Hendrix liaison to the Shepherd program on student internship placements. The College anticipates four to five Hendrix students participating in the program each year. Dr. Jay Barth ’87, director of civic engagement projects at Hendrix, will serve as campus liaison to the Shepherd Program.

Sure Beta Five Hendrix science students received research grants from the national biological honor society Beta Beta Beta: Chad Binns ’13, Meghan Kerin ’13, Laura Klasek ’13, Alex Saunders ’13, and Chelsea Woods ’14. The TriBeta grants totaled $2,725, according to Hendrix biology professor Dr. George Harper, advisor for the student TriBeta chapter at Hendrix.

Counting success Matthew Phillip Larson ’14, a math and philosophy double major, was one of seven students nationwide to receive a $3,000 Trjitzinsky Scholarship from the American Mathematical Society (AMS). Larson’s favorite math class so far has been differential equations, although he hasn’t yet chosen a specific field of study within mathematics. His goal is to continue studying the subject at the graduate level. Photo by Joshua Daugherty

Digital Diversity Computer science students Kaleigh Clary ’14 and Andres Ramirez ’13 are the recipients of the 2012 Diversity Scholarships from Acxiom Corp. The program provides a $5,000

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campus news

award and one-year internship opportunity for student segments who are underrepresented in the field of information technology. Recipients are selected based on academic achievement, field of study and areas of professional interest.

Twelve Hendrix students spent part of Winter Break on a week-long mission trip: Emily Barrett ’14, Christina Cole ’13, Peter Hanneman ’14, Mitch Harle ’16, Brittany Hearn ’15, Anthony Hollingsworth ’14, Martha Kellems ’15, Erin Murchison ’13, Taylor Pate ’16, Melissa Rooney ’16, Laura Wagner ’14, and Susan Warren ’16. Assistant student activities director Brent Owens, Hendrix Chaplain Rev. Wayne Clark ’84, and education professor Rynette Ritter Clark ’83 accompanied the students. The group served among the urban poor of San Francisco through the social programs of Glide Memorial United Methodist Church, featured in the movie The Pursuit of Happyness. The church has a model outreach program that includes meals for the homeless, after-school care for children, programs for senior citizens, activities for youth, and an HIV-AIDS clinic. Students helped to serve more than 1,000 meals a day to the homeless and assisted with other programs throughout the week. The mission trip was sponsored by the Hendrix Miller Center for Vocation, Ethics, and Calling.

Photos by Kristi Vo (top) and Wayne Clark (bottom left and right)

Serving Break-fest

Let’s Get Physics-al Nine Hendrix students attended the South Central Conference for Undergraduate Women in Physics in Austin, Texas: Ashley Hosman ’14, Shuyin Hua ’16, Alyssa Jaksich ’14, Kerry Moon ’15, Anna Pittman ’15, Anna Reine ’14, Grace Trees ’14, Annie Vogt ’15, and Rachel Zweig ’15.

SURF’n Safari Five Hendrix students received Student Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) grants from the Arkansas Department of Higher Education: Maiya Block ’14, Macrina Butler ’14, Dalton Hoose ’14, Meet Modi ’14, and Jessalyn Tackett ’15. Hendrix students were awarded $13,750 (9.2 percent) of the $150,000 available, according to biology professor Dr. George Harper. “Even more impressive to me is that (by my calculations) Hendrix biology and biochemistry and molecular biology students were awarded 21.6 percent of the funds that went to biology proposals,” he added.

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Professin’ Odyssey

Twelve Hendrix students spent winter Five faculty members were awarded Odyssey Professor- break on a mission trip ships to develop new engaged learning opportunities for to San Francisco. The students. students worked with Dr. Kristi McKim, a film studies professor, will use the Glide United Methodist Charles S. and Lucile Esmon Shivley Odyssey Professor- Church, making 750 ship for her project “Motion Pictures, Active Learning: sandwiches on Sunday Festivals, Scholars, Artists, and Research,” which includes morning and serving opportunities for undergraduate research activities such as meals to more than a Hendrix-Rhodes Film Research Symposium and hands- 600 people. on research in New York City’s Performing Arts Library. The Shivley Odyssey professorship was made possible by Lucile Esmon Shivley ’32. Dr. Damon Spayde, a physics professor, will use the Dr. Brad P. Baltz & Rev. William B. Smith Odyssey Professorship to help develop “Hands-On Physics,” a new introductory physics course that employs a carefully designed set of interactive, small group activities that include experimental lab work, computer modeling, group problem solving, small and large group discussion, and the occasional mini-lecture. The professorship was made possible by Dr. Brad Baltz ’84 and Rev. Bill Smith ’63. Biology professors Dr. Rick Murray and Dr. Mark Sutherland will use the Judy and Randy Wilbourn Odyssey

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Photo by Mike Kemp

campus news Jimmy Dornhoffer ’13 was one of eight Hendrix students invited to present their undergraduate science research to Arkansas legislators at Posters-at-theCapitol in Little Rock.

Professorship to develop a new, research-based laboratory in microbial diversity for the Biology Department’s introductory course. In the new course, students will use both classic microbial and new molecular sampling techniques to develop a database of the microbial diversity in the Hendrix Creek Preserve, adjacent to campus in The Village at Hendrix, as well as other locations governed by the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission and the Nature Conservancy. The professorship was made possible by Randy Wilbourn ’68 and his wife Judy. As the Margaret Berry Hutton Odyssey Professor, religious studies professor Dr. Robert Williamson will explore the intersection of the Bible and faithful living through several hands-on activities, including a semester-long reading group, a speaker series of renowned theologians and biblical scholars, and mission trips in communities at home and abroad. His project is titled “The Word in the World.” The professorship was made possible by Margaret Berry Hutton ’55.

Capitol Defense

Delegation Celebration

Mock ’n Roll

Eight Hendrix students won best college delegation at the annual Arkansas Student Congress on Human Relations sponsored by the Arkansas Communication and Theatre Arts Association: Luke Castille ’14, Patrick Cherry ’13, Barrett Demming ’15, Konstantin Gruenwald ’15, Nigel Halliday ’15, John McAvey ’16, Armeen Neshat ’13, captain, and Brittany Webb ’15. This is the 34th year that Hendrix has fielded a student delegation to the program. Gruenwald won the Margarite Metcalf Award for Parliamentary Procedure, while Halliday won best delegate from the Hendrix delegation and best delegate in the Senate. Halliday’s bill “A bill recommending to the United States

The Hendrix student mock trial team recently competed in its first tournament, the Mid-Missouri Mock Trial Invitational Tournament. The team includes: Luke Castille ’14, Elizabeth Forester ’16, Micah Graf ’13, Nigel Halliday ’15, John McAvey ’16, Armeen Neshat ’13, Will VanScoy ’13, Brittany Webb ’15, and Laura Yoder ’16. Halliday won a Best Attorney award. Shawn Johnson ’98, an attorney for the Arkansas Attorney General’s office, coached the team, and speech instructor Mary Richardson is the team advisor. The team will compete this spring at the Regional American Mock Trial Tournament in Dallas, Texas.

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Congress that direct consumer prescription drug advertisement be banned” won first place in the best bill category. McAvey’s bill “A bill recommending to the United States Congress that the tax code be reformed” won second place. Neshat’s bill “A bill recommending to the United States Congress that the sanctions placed on the nation of Cuba be repealed” passed both Houses and became a law of Congress.

Eight students presented their science research this spring to Arkansas legislators at Posters-at-the-Capitol in Little Rock: Chris Akcali ’13 (Biology), Adam Bigott ’14 (Biology), Kaleigh Clary ’13 (Mathematics and Computer Science), Jimmy Dornhoffer ’13 (Biology), Jessica Hook ’14 (Chemistry), Mackenzie Keller ’13 (Chemistry), Erik Urban ’13 (Physics), and Sloane Zimmerman ’13 (Chemistry).

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For the second year in a row, the Aonian, the Hendrix student literary and visual arts journal, won first place in the Southern Literary Festival Creative Writing Contest. Hanna Al-Jibouri ’12 was the Aonian editor-in-chief, and Jonny English ’13 was the associate editor. Laura Klasek ’13 won third place in the short story category for “Vocatio,” and “Narrative, Drive and the Difficult Hero” by Vincent Gammill ’14 won second place honors in the formal essay category. Klasek will attend the conference to accept her award and give a reading, where she will share the stage with noted writers, including Tim O’Brien.

strike up the band Six Hendrix Wind Ensemble students were selected to perform in the Arkansas Intercollegiate Band, an honor group for college students held in conjunction with the Arkansas All-State Conference. The students included Calvin Cochran ’13, trombone; Sarah Eddington ’16, clarinet; Caitlin Hoffman ’16, horn; Aaron Rice ’14, trombone; Bernard Smith ’15, clarinet; and Aaron Steinberg ’15, tenor saxophone.

Medaling Affair

Five alumni received the Hendrix College Odyssey Medal at the 2012 Founders Day Convocation this fall. Pictured left to right are Bret Jones ’81, John Birrer ’88, Dr. Lorna Collins Pierce ’59, Dr. Bill Fiser ’75, and Dee Davis ’81.

Photos by Joshua Daugherty

As a Hendrix student, John Birrer ’88 was introduced to the concept of a “D” letter grade by English professor Dr. Carol West. Birrer, now the senior vice president of customer experience for Charter Communications, returned to campus in the fall to receive the 2012 Odyssey Medal for Professional and Leadership Development at the College’s Honors Day convocation. In his acceptance remarks, Birrer thanked Dr. West and said that, following his disappointing initial performance in her class, he learned to listen to feedback and change his behavior. He earned a “B” in West’s class and, after

graduation, went on to a successful career with IBM, MCI, and T-Mobile. “Hendrix taught me the importance of being committed to a vision,” said Birrer, who now oversees more than 8,000 Customer Advisors, delivers 55 percent of the company’s sales, and is responsible for creation of a best-in-class in-home experience with Charter’s 8,200 technical repair representatives. Actor and dancer Bret Jones ’81 received the Odyssey Medal for Artistic Creativity. Jones went to England to study acting at the Drama Studio London shortly after graduating from Hendrix. In 1988, he joined the dance company Zoots and Spangles and became a featured dancer in shows throughout Europe. Forensic anthropologist Dr. Lorna Collins Pierce ’59 received the Odyssey Medal for Research. Dr. Pierce is the consultant in forensic anthropology at the Santa Clara County, Calif., Medical Examiner-Coroner’s Office and regularly consults with and teaches workshops for other law enforcement organizations in the identification of skeletal material. Dr. Bill Fiser ’75 was awarded the Odyssey Medal for Service to the World. Dr. Fiser is the medical director of the Arkansas Regional Organ Recovery Agency (ARORA), which manages all organ and tissue donation, recovery and allocation for transplantation in Arkansas. During his tenure, organ donation in Arkansas has doubled and tissue donation has quadrupled. A pioneer in the heart transplant field, he performed the first heart transplant in Arkansas in 1989 and helped develop and gain FDA approval for the mechanical cardiac support as a bridge to heart transplant in infants and children. Award-winning author Dee Davis ’81 received the Odyssey Medal for Special Projects. She has sold 21 books and four novellas. Her highly acclaimed first novel, Everything In Its Time, was published in July 2000. She’s also won the Booksellers Best, Golden Leaf, Texas Gold and Prism awards, and been nominated for the National Readers Choice Award, the Holt and two RT Reviewers Choice Awards.

campus news

hits of lit

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faculty news

Faculty News

In addition to their work in the classroom, Hendrix faculty members engage in research and professional activities that expand their expertise and enrich their teaching. Here is a small sample of the professional activities of Hendrix faculty.

Andres Caro, assistant professor of chemistry, received a $611,861 National Institutes of Health, Idea Networks of Biomedical Research Excellence grant for “Role of mtDNA Damage in Alcohol- and CYP2E1-dependent Toxicity.” Bob Dunn, professor of physics, is serving as a Department of Physics and Astronomy Senior Fellow at University of Canterbury in Christchurch, New Zealand. He also received a three-year, $43,000 grant as co-principal investigator on the research project “RUI: Geophysical Measurements Using Ring Lasers and Arrays.” Victoria Evans, assistant professor of kinesiology, presented her poster, Public Health Education and the Liberal Arts at Hendrix College, at the Second Annual Association of Schools of Public Health’s Undergraduate Summit for Public Health Education in San Francisco, Calif.

Doctoral Fellowship in Environmental Studies at Hendrix. Toni Jaudon, assistant professor of English, received an Isaiah Thomas grant to attend the Summer Seminar in the History of the Book sponsored by the American Antiquarian Society. She received the Norman Foerster Prize from the American Literature Section of the Modern Language Association in recognition of the best essay of 2012 in American Literature for “Obeah’s Sensations: Rethinking Religion at the Transnational Turn.” Cathy Jellenik, assistant professor of French, served as panelist for “One Word, Two Worlds: ‘ La banlieue’ in Annie Ernaux and Mathieu Kassovitz” at the Rocky Mountain Modern Language Association Convention in Boulder, Colo.

Nancy Fleming, professor of music, was appointed College and University Repertoire and Standards Chair for the Arkansas Chapter of the American Choral Directors Association.

Kiril Kolev, assistant professor of politics and international relations, wrote (with Judith Kelley), “Case Summaries” in Judith Kelley, Monitoring Democracy: When International Election Monitoring Works and Why It Often Fails published by the Princeton University Press.

Karen Griebling, professor of music, performed at World Saxophone Congress XVI with The Cross Town Trio at the University of St. Andrews in Fife, Scotland. The program included Griebling’s “Habanera.”

Maureen McClung, visiting assistant professor of biology, presented “Response of breeding bird populations to ice damage in the Ozark Mountains, Arkansas,” at the 5th North American Ornithological Congress.

David Hales, professor of chemistry, was chair of a session at the 2013 Lake Arrowhead Conference on Ion Chemistry and Mass Spectrometry. He is co-author of “Metastable fragmentation of photoionized styrene cluster ions: Implications for cluster ion structure,” published in the International Journal of Mass Spectrometry.

Britt Anne Murphy, acting director of the library and associate librarian, was presented the 2012 Suzanne Spurrier Academic Librarian Award by the Arkansas Library Association.

Joyce Hardin, professor of biology and president of the Arkansas Academy of Science, received a $120,000 Associated Colleges of the South grant for a Post-

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Rick Murray, associate professor of biology, received a $24,976 Arkansas INBRE Summer Research Fellowship grant for “Neural Fate Determination in the Mouse Dorsal Root Ganglion.”

a two-week photography workshop at Penland School of Crafts in Penland, N.C. Payne also donated work that was auctioned for both the student scholarship auction and the annual auction. Mary Richardson, instructor of speech, is serving as president of the Arkansas Communication and Theatre Arts Association. Allison Shutt, associate professor of history and social sciences, with Timothy Stapleton, published “African Police and Soldiers in Colonial Zimbabwe, 1923-80” in the International Journal of African Historical Studies. David Sutherland, associate provost and professor of math, moderated a student session and participated in the Pi Mu Epsilon business meetings held at the Mathematical Association of America’s annual MathFest in Madison, Wis. Todd Tinsley, assistant professor of physics, was selected as one of eight scholars for the Kavli Institute of Theoretical Physics at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Daniel Whelan, Charles Prentiss Hough Odyssey Associate Professor of Politics and International Relations, presented a seminar on “State Responsibility for Economic and Social Rights within the Context of Development” at the Human Rights Consortium Seminar Series on Development and Human Rights at the School of Advanced Study, University of London. Robert Williamson, assistant professor of religious studies, presented “A Matter of ‘Life’ and ‘Death’: Symbolic Immortality in Proverbs 10-29,” at the Society of Biblical Literature Annual Meeting in Chicago.

Maxine Payne, Judy and Randy Wilbourn Odyssey Associate Professor of Art, taught

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Courtesy photo

at home at hendrix:

Highlighting Alumni Faculty and Staff

Hillary Haskins Looney ’96

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Hendrix alumni Tom Siebenmorgen ’76, chief financial officer, and Shawn Mathis ’96, associate vice president for business and finance. In addition to her work in the Office of Business and Finance, Looney also serves as an adjunct professor and teaches an accounting course to current students. To balance the demands of her career, the former student-athlete continues to stay in shape and enjoy the Arkansas outdoors as a marathon runner, triathlete, and ultra-runner. In August 2011, she and her husband Jonathan, whom she married in 2003, welcomed their first child, a son named James. James was born in Colombia and is now two years old. “Now there’s lots of playtime at the park instead of running on the trails,” she says, adding that she does anticipate a return to endurance events at some point when James is a little older. “I just don’t know how to entertain him indoors. Hopefully someday he will willingly join me on the trails.” The marathon mom now takes a similarly parental perspective toward Hendrix students. “As a student, you don’t understand the amount of passion that goes into making Hendrix what it is for the students,” she says, adding that she enjoys watching student workers in the Business Office blossom into adults. “It was very eye-opening to see Hendrix from a different perspective as an employee and really understand what goes on behind the scenes to make the experience that students have here. It is very satisfying knowing you’re a part of what students experience and what that will mean to them for the rest of their lives.” Photo by Stuart Holt

Hillary Haskins Looney ’96 first learned of Hendrix during a college fair at her high school in Houston, Texas. She visited campus with her older sister Shana Haskins ’95 and completely fell in love. A fullback on the women’s soccer team, Looney’s freshman year was the first year Hendrix competed in the NCAA Division III Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference. She also enjoyed immersing herself in the outdoor recreation Arkansas offered, going hiking at state parks like Petit Jean and Pinnacle Mountain (which is still one of her favorite hikes), rappelling and rock climbing. While at Hendrix, she participated in Hendrix-in-Haiti, a two-week mission trip, and interned with a women’s health clinic in Little Rock. After graduating with an economics and business degree and receiving the Mosley Economics Award, Looney joined the Peace Corps and served two and half years in Bolivia, South America. She worked with a Bolivian agency that supported groups of women artisans from the “campo” (rural areas) who made handicrafts. “It was a progressive agency, empowering women and supporting women in business, which was not typical in their culture,” said Looney, who helped convert the agency’s accounting procedures from paper operations to a computerized system. When she returned from the Peace Corps, Looney also returned to Hendrix to work in the Office of Admission. Looney helped the office convert its internal processes to accommodate a new computer software program and build reports on prospective students in the enrollment cycle. After two and half years, she enrolled again at Hendrix to complete her master’s degree in accounting. After a year and a half working for a CPA firm in Little Rock, Looney returned to Hendrix … again. “I guess Hendrix just feels like home,” she says with a smile. In her current capacity as assistant controller, Looney organizes the college’s yearly audit, oversees the general financial accounting structure, and supervises accounts payable, grants, and purchasing. She works with fellow

Left: Texas native Hillary Haskins Looney ’96 enjoys hiking in the Natural State with Rev. Rachel Cornwell ’96. Middle: As a student, Looney and classmate Dr. Kristy Bondurant ’96 participated in the Hendrix-in-Haiti program. Looney now works at her alma mater as assistant controller.

Story by Rob O’Connor ’95, Managing Editor

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Photo by Joshua Daugherty

2012 -2013

Photo courtesy of the Hendrix College Archives

1958 -1959

hendrix through time

Some things never change. Hendrix students have always enjoyed a close connection with faculty members in small classes. But some things have changed at Hendrix, including the way teachers teach. This fall, environmental studies professor Dr. Amanda Hagood taught Writing in the Natural State, an environmental literature class, with environmental sociologist Dr. Carmel Price and her students at Furman

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University, using new high-definition videoconferencing technology. This year, Hendrix used videoconferencing technology for other blended learning projects, including two courses with students in China taught by religion professor Dr. Jay McDaniel and a politics course taught by Dr. Jay Barth ’87 from the Democratic National Convention.

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Photo by David Knight ’71

Farewell to the Chief! President Cloyd ends 12-year tenure Dr. J. Timothy Cloyd announced at the February meeting of the Board of Trustees that he would step down after 12 years as President of Hendrix College. “One thing I have learned is that organizations are living, evolving organisms,” said Dr. Cloyd, who will return to the Hendrix faculty as a professor in the Department of Politics and International Relations after a sabbatical and will continue to work in higher education consulting. “Twelve years is a reasonable time to run an organization and, during that time, Hendrix has assumed national leadership among private, liberal arts colleges and has successfully completed a major capital campaign. The time is right to bring in fresh leadership to forge a new strategic direction for the College.” When Dr. Cloyd became the 10th president of Hendrix College in 2001, he inherited an institution at a crossroads. The national stature of the institution had increased during Dr. Ann Die Hasselmo’s 10-year tenure and the College was well positioned for further advancement. As Vice President for College Relations and Development, Dr. Cloyd had played a key role in a remarkable period of progress for the College. But no amount of preparation could have equipped a new leader for the challenges Hendrix would confront. Shortly after his appointment as President, the country’s economy collapsed following the events of 9/11. The State of Arkansas suspended its support of the Governor’s Scholarship program that had allowed some of the state’s brightest students attend Hendrix. President Cloyd rose to the challenge, boldly, creatively, and entrepreneurially. He turned the challenge toward the Hendrix community, its faculty, staff, alumni, friends, trustees, and stakeholders. And he took it on himself. He demanded change and expelled the status quo. He argued and never bargained for something less than what he believed

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was best for Hendrix. He led national organizations. He initiated partnerships with other institutions and international organizations. He attracted attention, and he asked for money. During his time at Hendrix, Dr. Cloyd raised more than $160 million for the endowment and to fund numerous academic and capital projects, including 17 new buildings. When the Board of Trustees established a set of strategic objectives for the College in 2003 and outlined the goals and objectives of A Commitment to National Leadership, a $100 million capital campaign, the task seemed daunting, but President Cloyd was not intimidated by the challenge. In addition to seeking the funding to complete the campaign, he worked to create new opportunities to enrich the Hendrix experience: The Hendrix Miller Center for Vocation, Ethics, and Calling, which furthers the College’s foundation as a United Methodist Church institution and places faith exploration and life calling as a central part of a liberal arts education; The Crain-Maling Center of Jewish Culture, which celebrates the growing diversity of the student body; a new student and faculty exchange program in Harbin, China, and other international alliances that prepare students to be leaders in a global society; the Rwanda Presidential Scholars Program, which recognizes the role we can play in helping other nations recover from devastating events like the Rwandan genocide in the 1990s. The innovations at Hendrix undertaken during Dr. Cloyd’s leadership have been featured in the New York Times, Money Magazine, Atlantic Monthly, The New York Review of Books, and Time Magazine. Executive Vice President, General Counsel, and Dean of Advancement W. Ellis Arnold III will serve as Acting President during a national search for Dr. Cloyd’s successor.

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But seriously … every few years someone begins writing an obituary for liberal arts education.

Myth Making

This time, higher education as a whole hasn’t escaped this morbid impulse. From the campaign trail to the State of the Union address, higher education is a national issue among lawmakers. Op-ed pages across the country are ripe with calls for cost control and curricular revamping. In Academically Adrift: Limited Learning on College Campuses (2011), Richard Arum and Josipa Roksa assert that one-third of the students they studied “did not demonstrate any significant improvement in learning after four years of college.” Grassroots movements like UnCollege, started by former Hendrix student Dale J. Stephens, a fellowship recipient of PayPal founder Peter Thiel’s foundation, are proselytizing the virtues of abstinence from formal higher learning. Private liberal arts colleges — with their perceived humanities-centric curricula, lack of sector-specific job training, and higher-on-paper costs of attendance compared to public schools — are acutely vulnerable to criticism. While the widespread review of American higher education is relatively recent, the temptation to write the liberal arts off as dead is not. Protecting the flank has become nearly as second nature as showcasing the bucolic campus and small class sizes to prospective students and families on campus visits. Given that strong communication skills are universally accepted outcomes of the liberal arts, it’s a little surprising that liberal arts colleges are constantly playing message defense about their value. But let’s face it. The other team is big. Liberal arts colleges educate less than five percent of the country’s more than 15 million college students. That’s less than the enrollment of for-profit education behemoth University of Phoenix.

The National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (NAICU) recently launched a campaign to dispel certain popular misconceptions about private colleges. NAICU’s 9 Myths about Private Higher Education are:

Liberal arts colleges educate less than five percent of the country’s more than 15 million college students.

Photo by Joshua Daugherty

Despite such David and Goliath-like prospects, there’s no shortage of accomplished liberal arts alumni whose success after college cast doubt on the doomsayers. And groups like Phi Beta Kappa and the Council of Independent Colleges (CIC), an advocacy group for more than 600 independent colleges and universities, have launched counter-strikes. “Given the pressing national priority to increase the number of college graduates who have mastered both the skills that employers say they want and the equally urgent skills to re-engage productive use of our democratic institutions, America’s smaller independent colleges and universities have a vital role to play,” writes CIC President Richard Ekman on CIC’s website. “In an era when many state university systems are forced to increase tuition and limit enrollment, independent colleges offer a cost-effective alternative that accounts for higher rates of degree-completion and postgraduate satisfaction.” “Independent colleges are more likely to enroll and graduate low-income and first-generation college students,” Ekman says. “Their emphasis on the liberal arts is correlated with higher percentages of students who perform well on tests of learning outcomes and who succeed in science and engineering careers.” “Graduates of these colleges have lower levels of debt than other students, are more involved in their communities, and they graduate on time,” he adds. “Even Academically Adrift concedes that ‘students of the liberal arts do better than others in gaining the skills that lead to success in later life.’” Among the facts championed in CIC’s campaign: • The graduation rates at independent colleges are much higher than those at public and for-profit institutions. Students graduate about a year earlier than their peers at public institutions and five years earlier than students

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Private colleges are not affordable

Average inflation-adjusted net tuition and fees (published tuition and fees minus grant aid from all sources and federal higher education tax benefits) at private colleges dropped 3.5 percent from 2007-08 to 2012-13. Seventy-eight percent of students who received a bachelor’s degree from a four-year private college were able to complete it in four years, compared to 60 percent of graduates at state institutions. A study by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation found that average four-year graduation rate at Hendrix was higher than the national average for traditional four-year public universities, as well as the national average at other selective four-year private institutions.

Federal student aid drives up college costs

Over the past four years, private colleges have slowed annual tuition increases to the lowest rates seen in at least four decades. Adjusted for inflation, published tuition increases at private colleges have decreased every decade since 1982.

Private colleges enroll only white, wealthy, traditional students

Approximately one-third of all undergraduates at four-year private colleges are minority students. Private colleges enroll the same percentage of African American (12 percent), Hispanic/ Latino (12 percent), Asian (6 percent), and multi-racial (2 percent) students as fouryear public institutions and enroll similar percentages of students from low-, middle-, and upper-income families as four-year public colleges.

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Many college graduates leave school with more than $100,000 in debt

Only 3.1 percent of all borrowers (undergraduate and graduate students across all sectors of higher education) have student debt of $100,000 or more. Only 5.4 percent have debt of more than $75,000, and only 11.3 percent have debt of more than $50,000. A Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation study showed the “average indebtedness” of Hendrix graduates to be lower than private college peers and public universities

A college degree is no longer a good investment

By 2018, six in 10 American jobs (63 percent) will require some form of postsecondary education. In 2010, workers with a bachelor’s degree or higher earned an average of more than $78,000 per year; workers with an associate’s degree earned approximately $49,000 per year; and those without a high school diploma averaged approximately $29,000 per year. The median lifetime earnings for workers with bachelor’s degrees is $2.3 million. For workers with just a high school diploma, it is only $1.3 million.

Fewer students are choosing to attend private colleges

Enrollment at private colleges and universities increased 1.8 percent in 2011, while total postsecondary enrollment in the United States declined slightly for the first time in 15 years, by 0.14 percent. In the past decade, enrollment at private colleges has grown 25 percent, and is expected to continue to rise.

All private colleges have billion-dollar endowments

Only 44 of the nation’s 1,600 private colleges and universities — 3 percent — have endowments of $1 billion or more — down from 47 the previous year. The market value of the Hendrix endowment is $171 million, as of November 30, 2012.

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at for-profit institutions. This means fewer years of paying tuition, a quicker start at earning a salary, and more years in their lifetimes to earn. • Low-income and first-generation students and students of color enrolled at independent colleges are more likely to graduate than their peers in other sectors of higher education. • Independent colleges are affordable because they raise and distribute six times as much of their own money for student scholarships as the federal government provides in aid.

The Book of Jobs The invasive examination of higher education has necessarily focused on the ability of colleges and universities to prepare students to find postbaccalaureate employment. That’s a valid concern. But the argument that liberal arts graduates aren’t prepared for workplace success because they lack specialized job training is a false diagnosis. Careers come from lots of college majors. And liberal arts graduates gain critical thinking and communication skills that are a catalyst to professional success. Even the Academically Adrift authors would agree. They found that liberal arts students showed “significantly higher gains in critical thinking, complex reasoning and writing skills over time than students in other fields of study.” America’s global leadership role rests on cultural and political ideas, alongside business and technological innovation. It’s no wonder that countries like China are now looking to emulate the one American higher education form that sees value in all of these aspects — the liberal arts college. Why else would large public universities set up honors colleges that offer a smallcollege feel amid large university amenities like major sports programs? Most importantly, liberal arts colleges give graduates more than a skillset. They have a mindset that is entrepreneurial and innovative, enabling them to adapt to changing job markets and evolve in changing times. Far from being a barrier to entry into the workforce, a liberal arts education may be the most consistent set of keys to the kingdom.

(Can Get Some) Satisfaction Collectively, liberal arts colleges consider an undergraduate education to be about more than just four years of studying, student life, and workforce readiness. It’s often the first and most significant step in a lifelong journey of self-discovery. That earthy ethos may explain why graduates are more satisfied with their undergraduate experience than their public school peers. Last fall, The Annapolis Group, a collection of approximately 130 leading independent liberal arts colleges, released a study comparing survey responses of Annapolis Group member alumni with those of alumni of private universities, the top 50 public universities and a larger group of public institutions. The survey asked students what they did as undergraduates, whether they thought that experience had an impact on their professional path, and their overall satisfaction with their undergraduate experience. The study found graduates of Annapolis Group members to be more satisfied with their undergraduate experiences and more likely to think that their educations had a significant personal and professional impact on them. The study’s results showed 77 percent of alumni from liberal arts colleges rated their undergraduate experience “excellent,” compared to 59 percent of alumni from private universities and 56 percent from the top 50 public universities.

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Annapolis Group graduates reported that their college experience prepared them better for after-college life, first jobs, career change, and graduate school than alumni from other schools. The report found that students at Annapolis Group institutions were more likely to have classes that required more reading and writing. Alumni of liberal arts colleges also reported that they benefited from small classes and interactions with faculty devoted to undergraduate teaching.

An Annapolis Group study results showed 77 percent of alumni from liberal arts colleges rated their undergraduate experience “excellent.” Surveys of Hendrix alumni indicate similar satisfaction levels. More than 90% of those responding to a 2011 alumni survey indicated that they remembered their time at Hendrix fondly, would recommend the College to prospective students, and that their experience at Hendrix had instilled in them a lifelong love of learning. Hendrix alumni also attributed their business success and personal growth to internship, service learning and research opportunities and the mentoring relationships they developed with faculty. Each year, the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) surveys students at hundreds of colleges and universities. According to the 2012 NSSE survey, 97 percent of first-year students at Hendrix rated their experience as good or excellent. Ninety-three percent of seniors would choose Hendrix again if they could start their college career over. The 2012 NSSE survey results also report: • 96 percent of seniors discuss career plans with faculty • 89 percent of first-year students feel Hendrix provides substantial support for their academic success • 85 percent of first-year students say Hendrix faculty members are available, helpful, and sympathetic • 84 percent of first-year students report their peers are friendly, supportive, and give them a sense of belonging

Bringing It All Back Home Your Hendrix Odyssey: Engaging in Active Learning has brought national recognition to Hendrix as a model for engaged liberal arts and sciences education. That attention has attracted more students from across the country and around the world. But more than visibility, Odyssey has brought focus to the kind of hands-on education that has always made Hendrix distinct. Our students have amazing learning experiences alongside faculty who are devoted to teaching undergraduates and mentoring them in activities such as research, internships, international study, and service. These experiences prepare students for graduate and professional schools, post-graduate fellowships, and — yes — employment. Our alumni are leaders in the arts, in business, in their communities, and in education, government, and science. And when they reflect on their life’s journey, they usually recall an encounter with a professor, a student leadership role, an intramural or intercollegiate athletic experience, or a friendship from a residence hall that happened at Hendrix and helped put them on their path. While Odyssey as a program is a new evolution, its foundation — liberal arts education — has been around for a long time and remains alive and well.

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Private colleges are not innovative or flexible

Private colleges are expanding flexible learning models, outreach, academic support, and financial aid programs that help students from all backgrounds realize the opportunity to enroll in college and complete their degree. This spirit of innovation, creativity, and adaptability has allowed private colleges to thrive for hundreds of years. Hendrix is consistently recognized nationally for offering innovative academic and co-curricular programs that ensure students succeed. Hendrix was named one of the country’s top “Up and Coming” liberal arts colleges by U.S. News and World Report for the past five years and is featured in the 2012 edition of the Princeton Review as one of the country’s best 377 colleges, the latest edition of Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think about Colleges, Forbes magazine’s annual list of America’s Top 650 Colleges, and the 2013 edition of the Fiske Guide to Colleges. These publications consider, among many factors, academic quality, cost, opportunities for students, and outcomes for graduations.

Private colleges are not transparent or accountable

As nonprofit entities, private colleges follow specific IRS rules on governance and fiscal transparency, including widely available 990 forms that provide public disclosure of a range of institutional activities. Participation in federal student aid programs requires accreditation by a U.S. Department of Education-approved agency, a process that involves intensive and highly-structured examinations of the financial health and academic quality of entire institutions and individual academic programs. Since 2007, more than 800 private colleges and universities — including Hendrix — have signed up to participate in the NAICU-created U-CAN college information website. Institutional profiles provide 47 information points across admissions, enrollment, graduation rates, price of attendance, financial aid, loan debt, and other areas—and give 26 links to specific pages of an institution’s website.

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Tutor Dynasty

Teacher sees student success through tutoring business franchise

Photo by Mike Kemp

As a student at Hendrix, Ashley Harden Hill ’02, who now owns Sylvan Learning Centers in Jonesboro, Memphis, Little Rock, and Conway (with agreements to open two more by 2015), observed a local kindergarten classroom as part of an education class she took to satisfy a social sciences requirement. That firsthand exposure to the elementary classroom quickly set her heart on being a teacher. “On the last day of class, I asked [Hendrix education professor] Dr. Jennings, ‘Where do I sign up to be a teacher? I think I’ve found my calling!’” says Hill. The answer wasn’t simple. The Arkansas Department of Education was drastically changing the requirements for teacher licensure prior to her anticipated graduation in May 2002. Hill would have to stay at Hendrix through May 2003, to complete the extensive new requirements. But in the spring of 2001, she ran into Dr. Jennings, who told her he thought of a way she could complete her education degree before the new requirements went into effect. Two summer terms at a state school and a fall semester back at Hendrix later, Ashley graduated earlier than expected in December 2001, and got her teaching license. In January 2002, Ashley was asked to finish out the school year for the maternity leave of the first-grade teacher under whom she had done her student-teaching at Carver Magnet Elementary School in Little Rock. That summer, she moved back to Jonesboro, where she had graduated high school. Her mother showed Ashley a newspaper ad seeking a director for the new Sylvan Learning of Jonesboro, which offers tutoring in math, reading, and writing, as well as homework help, assistance in study skills, and preparation for state, national and college-placement tests. Feeling like she didn’t have enough teaching experience, she didn’t apply. A few weeks later, there was another ad. Sylvan of Jonesboro needed part-time teachers. Feeling confident about this opportunity, she applied and was hired as one of the initial four teachers at the center. Within four months, the Jonesboro center “just exploded.” “It was apparent that we met a need that had gone unmet in the community,” says Hill, who became the center’s full time Progress Manager in summer 2003. Six months later, she was promoted again to be the Education Director, a position she held for five years.

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A Good Call In late 2008, the Center Director position opened up. Hill had previously declined the position twice. This time, the owner, who was based in Columbia, Mo., called and said, “Ashley, just take the job!” In April 2009, the owner called again and told her he was going to have to find a buyer or close the Jonesboro center due to economic difficulties. “It didn’t even occur to me [to buy it],” Hill says. “I didn’t have the capital to buy a franchise.” A few days later, her mother-in-law called her out of the blue. “She said, ‘If you think you’d be interested in owning, we’ll help you capitalize’,” Hill recalls. She let call the sink in. Then she talked to her husband and her parents. “They [her parents] said, ‘We’ll help you, too,’ so we decided we were going to go for it,” she says. For her business loan, Ashley visited a local bank president, whose son had gone to Sylvan and had a positive experience. “He said, ‘I think we can help you … You’ll be fine,’” Hill recalls. He also said he’d have the paperwork in 30 days. But Hill needed it in three in order to keep the center open. He graciously sped up the process. She flew to Sylvan’s corporate office in Baltimore, Md., and applied to be franchisee. “At the time, I ran the center and was a single-center operator and franchisee,” she says. “Everything went great. I never intended to do more.” But in late 2010, the corporate office called and asked her if she’d like the Memphis center. After a lot of soul-searching, due diligence, and “a deal we couldn’t refuse,” Hill was a two-center operator. “That was it, by George,” she says. Then on May 24, 2011, while she was out on a date with her husband, corporate called again and said the Little Rock center needed help and asked would she want to buy it? But there was a catch. It came with an agreement to open new Sylvan centers in the three surrounding territories — Conway, Hot Springs, and North Little Rock. “Yeah, it was a four-for-one special,” she says. “But it wasn’t cheap.”

Familiar Territory Fortunately, central Arkansas wasn’t foreign soil for Hill, who was born in Little Rock, grew up in Jacksonville, and briefly lived in Hot Springs during elementary school. Hill got her first exposure to Hendrix as a student at Arkansas Governor’s School in 1996 and through her step-brother Brett Worlow ’97. “My step-father encouraged me to go where I wanted to go,” she says. “He wanted me to have the best education experience I could possibly have, so I chose Hendrix.” “If I’d gone through a big university with 15,000 students, I wouldn’t be the same person,” she says. “Hendrix didn’t micro-manage me, which put so much responsibility on me to be a responsible student. They built my confidence as Ashley, as me, and helped me to find my path.” In August 2011, she purchased the Little Rock center.

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“I had connections to every area, so it can’t be that hard, right?” she figured at the time. But the capital city center was “a disaster,” she says. With duct-taped binders and handwritten tabs, it was a far cry from the tight ship Hill was accustomed to running. “It was so bad we called every parent and said we’re taking a twoweek break to clean up,” says Hill, who was “big pregnant” with her second child at the time and living at the La Quinta Inn on Rodney Parham during the week. Within one week of owning the Little Rock center, her full-time staff quit, leaving Hill to find new staff, train them, and re-open before November, when her daughter was born.

Going to School With four Sylvan Learning Center locations and two more on the way in the next two years, Hill feels like she has gone to school all over again. “My first real ‘aha’ moment was meeting with parents after I became an owner,” says Hill. Over the years she spent employed by the prior owner, meeting with parents and providing quality service to every child was “just my job — a job I loved and did very well.” But those activities and “doing my job” took on a whole different meaning as the business owner, she says. “My eyes were opened,” she says. “I understood more than ever, ‘This is a long term investment parents make in their children’s education.’” “Helping students succeed was one of things drew me to Sylvan in the first place. I was one of those classroom teachers who wanted every student to get it before we moved on,” she says. “That’s just not possible, and that’s very disheartening.” The “secret sauce” of Sylvan is mastery-based learning, says Hill. “We only spend time on the things they absolutely need,” she explains. “Students go to school 180 days a year and advance one grade level. Sylvan guarantees one grade-level’s progress in 36 hours because we weed out all the non-essentials and focus on a completely personalized approach for each child.” Sylvan does not “compete” with schools, Hill says. “We’re a partner. We have the same goal as the schools — student success,” she says. “For kids who need a little bit more help, that’s what we’re here for. We can bridge that gap.” Hill anticipates the company’s new digitized instructional model, called SylvanSync, will bridge the gap even further by putting Sylvan resources, including tablet instruction resources, into smaller communities without the expense of a full-scale Sylvan center. “That’s going to be the way we get to help more students,” she says. Hill has been an early adopter of SylvanSync technology at her centers. But technology won’t replace the hands-on approach to teaching and learning, she insists. “Technology facilitates the teachers’ effectiveness,” says Hill, who stays up on the latest pedagogical trends with continuing education and attendance at national teaching conferences. “Technology is not going to replace great teachers. It never will.” Story by Rob O’Connor ’95, Managing Editor

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From Conference Championship to Corporate Finance

Photo by Joshua Daugherty

Jordan Suydam’s Hendrix Odyssey is pitch perfect

Jordan Suydam ’11 left freezing March temperatures in Cleveland, Ohio, to find sunny 70-degree weather on his first campus visit to Hendrix. The recently completed NCAA Division III athletics facilities didn’t look too bad either. Suydam, a baseball player, was considering Division II and III schools closer to home, before he was contacted by former Hendrix baseball coach R.J. Thomas. “One day I just woke up and decided Hendrix was it,” he says, “And it was the best decision I ever made.” But his first visit also happened during the College’s Spring Break, when there wasn’t a lot of activity on campus. So he was somewhat surprised when he arrived to find Shirttails Serenade. “I thought, ‘Oh geez, what did I get myself into?’” says Suydam, who now considers Shirttails among his favorite Hendrix traditions. “I didn’t know about Hendrix and the liberal arts. I didn’t really think about it,” he says. “I went to play ball and figured I’d fit in anywhere.” “Later on I found out it was a good school, it wasn’t hard to fit in, and the professors were great,” he says. Among those professors were Stephen Kerr ’76 and Dr. Karen Oxner for accounting, and Lyle Rupert ’82, an “awesome teacher” whose financial management class (now called corporate finance), Suydam took. Dr. Robert Glidwell’s money, banking, and credit course was “one of the more challenging classes I ever took,” he says. And Dr. Ralph Scott’s ’73 classes “were always hard, but you learn a lot.” Suydam credits a lot of his success in the classroom to the discipline he learned on the baseball field. “I had no problems with time management,” says Suydam, who was a pitcher for four years, including on the 2009 Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference championship team. “It was morning workouts, classes, practices, study. It only helped me. I didn’t know any different.” “Being a student-athlete in college was invaluable,” he says. “The fast pace of always being busy made it a lot more fun, and there are a lot of athletes in my profession. It’s a point of interest, and being a college athlete shows a lot of time consumed and a lot of hard work.” Suydam graduated in 2011 with a degree in economics and business and completed his master’s degree in accounting in 2012. A month later, he started at Stephens Inc., doing financial modeling and valuation as a financial analyst in the company’s investment banking department. “This is what I wanted to do,” says Suydam, who had other job offers from public accounting firms. “I really wanted to get into corporate finance and do valuation, so this is perfect.” Though Hendrix is very economics and accounting heavy, many new recruits at Stephens have a lot more finance courses in their background. “On the surface, a lack of finance background seemed like a disadvantage in getting my foot in the door, so I had to talk my way into that,” he says. Indeed, Suydam applied for Stephens’ program during his senior year but wasn’t accepted until after he completed his master’s degree. “I lacked their finance background but I don’t think I was at a disadvantage at all. The finance majors were more polished, but the thing about Hendrix was I knew how to figure it out.” “Finance classes don’t necessarily focus on accounting, which is the basis for everything. If you understand accounting, I think you can understand finance,” he adds. “And I took politics and history, stuff I

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wasn’t comfortable with or used to. Now I like that I know that. It helps a lot in the real world.” In addition to baseball and classes, Suydam helped develop a business plan and feasibility study for a Rwandan coffee and tea business for The Village at Hendrix, the New Urbanist community adjacent to campus. He also studied the Alexander movement technique with theatre professor Dr. Eric Binnie. “As far as my background, I wouldn’t change it for the world. I gained something more intangible,” he says. “Playing athletics, taking philosophy and history classes … I don’t think there’s anything wrong with being well rounded. I got the best education I could get.”

Thrown Into the Fire Suydam’s first day at Stephens was June 11, 2012. “It’s been intense. You start training your first day, and it hits you in the face,” he says. “Right away, you’re building Excel models, applying finance concepts, and building out company financials.” “The first three weeks of training was a big struggle. The models and theory behind them are very complicated and in depth,” he says. “They throw you into the fire and you’re forced to pick it up quickly.” Since completing training, he’s moved upstairs to the analyst room on the 24th floor, where the investment banking division works. And now he’s a lot more comfortable with Microsoft Excel keyboard shortcuts. ‘I rarely use the mouse anymore,” he says proudly.

Hendrix Teammates Suydam isn’t a lone Warrior at Stephens, Inc. Among the alumni in the investment banking division are Kenny Gunderman ’93, the head of investment banking; Mickey McFarlin ’98, managing director, who works in mergers and acquisitions; and Matt Kentner ’97, vice president for information technology services. “As an analyst, I can work with all industries, which is kind of cool to get a chance to do finance across all industries,” he says. That will change. The longer Suydam stays at Stephens, the more likely he will be to specialize in one industry. And he plans to be there a long time. “I like it here and the work I get to do,” he says. “I can definitely see being here long term.” And there’s no reason he can’t be. “When he first went through our interview process, he did not get an offer,” recalls Gunderman, who like Suydam was also a student-athlete at Hendrix. Gunderman played basketball and competed in the NAIA and NCAA. “The vast majority who hear that go off and we never hear from them again. Jordan stuck to it and said, ‘OK, what do I need to do?’ He came back and graded out at the top. His persistence distinguished himself and now that he’s here, he’s really distinguished himself.” “It’s not just about the finance skills. It’s about people skills, relationship skills and the ability to interact with others,” Gunderman says. “Jordan’s proving that.” Story by Rob O’Connor ’95, Managing Editor

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A Space Odyssey

A self-proclaimed space cadet, Chuck Chalfant ’81 wanted to be an astronaut. That dream didn’t take off, but his Fayetteville, Ark.-based company Space Photonics certainly has the right stuff, including high capacity optical systems that are now aboard the International Space Station. A Booneville, Ark., native, Chalfant, who grew up in the United Methodist Church, knew Hendrix was a “really good school.” At Hendrix, he majored in physics. “Basically my sophomore year, I took a physics class and did OK, and Dr. Richard Rolleigh ’67 said, “ ‘You may want to look at physics’ so I said ‘OK,’” he recalls. “It wasn’t an easy major for me. I had a hard time.” Chalfant credits Rolleigh’s mentoring with helping him succeed. “Dr. Rolleigh was probably the best teacher ever, really helpful … just fantastic,” he says. Chalfant also credits the discipline he developed as a student-athlete on the Hendrix swim team. “I jumped in the pool, did a 50, and did pretty good,” says Chalfant, whose sister Julie Chalfant Lacy ’78 told swim coach Mike Daniel about her brother’s pool prowess. Chalfant later swam for Coach Bob Courtway. “It was pretty much a regimen, but we had tons of fun,” he says.

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Chalfant, who did not swim competitively as a high school student, originally wanted to play on the basketball team. “I was going to play basketball, but I realized I might not see a lot of playing time,” he says, recalling his classmates Lawson Pilgrim ’81, Austin Sullivan ’80, and T.J. Ticey ’80, who made up one of the school’s most successful teams. “They just ruled.” Though modest, Chalfant was no slouch in the pool. He broke an AIC swimming record his first year and the teams he swam on won four AIC championships and competed in four NAIA national meets that produced several NAIA All-Americans, including him. “We had a lot of fun, and the team did great,” recalls Chalfant, who was inducted into the Hendrix Athletic Department’s Hall of Honor for outstanding alumni athletes three years ago. “It was a big part of my Hendrix life, and it was really cool.” After graduation, Chalfant was offered a teaching assistantship at the University of

Arkansas, where he focused on laser physics. “Technically, I was prepared enough,” he says. But with classmates from all over the country and the world, it was “intimidating.” His first semester, he was one of five (out of seven) teaching and research assistants who got C’s and were placed on probation. “It was very frustrating,” he says. “But I had a competitive nature and did not want to give up.” Chalfant rebounded and received his master’s degree in 1985. He left Arkansas for Silicon Valley to work for Lockheed Space Systems in Sunnyvale, Calif. After seven years, he moved to Palo Alto, where he worked for Optical Networks. He moved back to Arkansas in 1996, still working for Optical Networks. Three years later, the company got an investment from a Silicon Valley venture capital group and decided to no longer do government research and development. Chalfant saw “a window of opportunity” and decided to start his own company. “The transition was great and we hit the ground running,” he says. “I based the whole business on small company R&D, and we’re still doing that. We maintained the government customers, including NASA and the U.S. Air Force, and kept that going.” “We’re a small high-tech company that does cool things with lasers,” he says, describing Space Photonics to a non-physics major.

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Photo by Michael Woods

Chuck Chalfant ’81 flies high with Space Photonics

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Hendrix Magazine | Spring 2013 21

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Photo by Michael Woods

The company makes fiber optics networks and free-space laser communications terminals for building-to-building and other platforms where fiber optic cable is not available. “Turning laser beam light on and off really, really fast … That pretty much sums it up,” he says. Space Photonics uses materials that can withstand extremely harsh environments, including deep space and earth-orbiting spacecraft. “Our materials are really good at withstanding the radiation you have when you’re in orbit,” Chalfant explains. “Shielding and materials are critical … That’s not rocket science, just good business.” Despite the distance from Silicon Valley, Space Photonics has thrived in the Natural State, Chalfant says. “Arkansas has been great,” says Chalfant, who praises the state’s tax credits and support from groups like the Arkansas Science and Technology Authority and Arkansas Economic Development Commission. “With no outside investment, we’ve been able to leverage the R&D we’ve done, which is important. The potential is sizeable with the laser communications technology we have.” Arkansas legislators have also been supportive of Space Photonics, Chalfant says. “They played a huge role in our effort to show our technology was going to work,” he says. “They were instrumental in putting us on a critical path from the very beginning.” Over a five-year period, Arkansas’s Congressional delegation helped bring millions of dollars from the Department of Defense and other sources through line-item projects, which no longer exist. “If we had tried five years later, we would be years behind and going much slower,” Chalfant says. Often his own lobbyist, Chalfant says relationships not technology — are the keys to success. “Early on in a tech career, the focus is on technology. There’s not much understanding of the business aspect,” says Chalfant, who did take some economics courses at Hendrix. “What I learned working with Lockheed and Optical Networks is that human factors dominate. It’s the relationships you have with people. That’s what’s important in business. You can’t rule the world with a big idea or gadget.” Despite the lack of earmark funding opportunities, Chalfant sees business — in aerospace, space and, more recently, telecommunications and broadband access — going upward. “There are gobs and gobs of satellites, and they need smart technology to keep operating

at high capacity,” he says. Space technology is surprisingly 1960s-era, and companies like Space Photonics can help speed it up with optical signaling with lower weights, lower power consumption, and higher data transfer speeds, he says. Last fall, Space Photonics entered into an exclusive licensing agreement with SCHOTT North America for the commercialization of its patented LaserFire® Free Space Optical Communications Systems, which enable uninterrupted, secure communications for military and intelligence customers. The exclusive part of the license is only limited to SCHOTT’s government and military sales. It’s completely up to Space Photonics on how to handle their approach to the telecommunications and cellular backhaul (e.g. the data transfer and handling of the signals around and between the cell towers) markets. Ironing out the licensing agreement with SCHOTT was “a big learning experience” and “a huge challenge,” he says.

“When there’s something of value and two people negotiating about it, it’s very interesting,” says Chalfant, noting that his patent attorney is fellow Hendrix physics major Chuck Daugherty ’91 and “the most awesome patent attorney I could ever ask for.” Space Photonics has four patents, including LaserFire®, with more anticipated for next year, along with five trademarks. “It has taken years to make it work,” he says. “But it should be big winner.” “It’s hard to see beyond five years because 80-90 percent of the business is reactive. That’s just the way it is, and that’s been the fun part. You have to keep your eyes open year to year and take advantage of opportunity. I’ve taken risks and fought my way through it. I’ve just been lucky. Serendipity is my middle name,” Chalfant says. “We have a lot of fun, and now we have a chance to go somewhere … I’m charged up every day.” Story by Rob O’Connor ’95, Managing Editor

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Photo by Peter Howard

A Message from the Editor Liberal arts education is alive and well, despite what some politicians and pundits say. Every day we see the connection between the experiences our students have at Hendrix and the impact of the liberal arts on their lives after Hendrix. This issue of Hendrix Magazine focuses on the value of liberal arts education and how liberal arts graduates are prepared for success and to make meaningful and measurable impact in their communities. The stories in this issue feature alumni who have used their undergraduate education as a springboard to find success in business, education, politics, and science. For example, Ashley Harden Hill ’02 trained to be a teacher. Now she is applying those lessons as a business owner overseeing multiple franchises of Sylvan Learning Center. A champion on the baseball field and in the classroom, Jordan Suydam ’11 scored his dream job at Stephens, Inc., after completing his master’s degree in accounting at Hendrix. Physics grad Chuck Chalfant ’81 has seen his tech company Space Photonics take off … literally. Roby Brock ’88, an English major, created a comprehensive media source covering state business and politics. Hendrix friends Julie Puryear Crouch ’00 and Cathleen Staggs McFarlin ’00 seized an opportunity and built their business — The Wonder Place — into central Arkansas’ premiere children’s indoor play place. From CEO to scientist, the common threads that connect graduates of liberal arts colleges include creativity, critical thinking, and curiosity. Like Maia Yang ’13, whose Hendrix Odyssey includes working in India and studying Hispanic women business owners in Texas, liberal arts graduates have the drive to discover, the passion to pursue. Employers

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want these qualities. Hendrix alumni have them. This year’s Odyssey Medal recipients — customer experience guru John Birrer ’88, actor Bret Jones ’81, author Dee Davis ’81, organ donor advocate Dr. Bill Fiser ’75, and forensic anthropologist Dr. Lorna Collins Pierce ’59 — are a testament to the value of the kind of hands-on liberal arts education students receive at Hendrix. These alumni and previous Odyssey Medal winners like Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Douglas Blackmon ’86, Logitech CEO Bracken Darrell ’85, former U.S. Ambassador Alan Eastham ’73 are just a few examples of Hendrix alumni whose liberal arts education was the foundation for their successful careers. Hendrix graduates are prepared for more than the workplace. They’re ready for the world. They know how to think critically and creatively and how to communicate clearly. They celebrate diversity. They solve problems. They can learn and work collaboratively. And they can lead. They know their passions and how fulfilling it is to follow their dreams. At Hendrix, young people are transformed by ideas and values like artistic expression, engaged citizenship, ethics, and scientific discovery. These classical ideals are the cornerstone for civilized society, and they are critical in the contemporary world. Hendrix has always prepared graduates for success, and Hendrix Magazine is proud to highlight students, faculty, and alumni whose example shows … we’re more alive than ever. The Hendrix Magazine team

Hendrix Magazine | Spring 2013 23

student perspective

Long way to the top… Photo by Michael Tarne ’15

Luke Evans ’14, right, and Connor Newton ’16 practice rock climbing on the 30-foot climbing wall in the Wellness and Athletics Center. Evans and Newton are members of the Hendrix Climbing Coalition. Open to students of any experience or skill level who are interested in rock climbing, the group uses the climbing wall in the Wellness and Athletics Center to practice and sponsors trips to rock climbing destinations in the nearby Ozark Mountains. In 2009, Princeton Review ranked Hendrix 13th for “Best Athletics Facilities” among all 2,500 four-year colleges, including NCAA Division I, II and III schools.

Photo by Mike Kemp

Wonder Women Hendrix friends make magical place for children and families Shortly after they had seemingly settled into after-college life of careers and families, Hendrix roommates Cathleen Staggs McFarlin ’00 (left) and Julie Puryear Crouch ’00 wanted to make a change. Crouch graduated from Hendrix with a sociology degree and worked as a youth director at First United Methodist Church in Little Rock before becoming a mother. She will complete her master’s degree in social work this spring. McFarlin, who studied psychology and chemistry at Hendrix, got a master’s degree in nutrition and became a registered dietitian. For her, 60-plus hour work weeks and travel working on rural health research for the USDA was not a conducive schedule for the family life she wanted. “You can’t do it all, and I knew we couldn’t be happy keeping that pace and be a family,” says McFarlin, whose husband is Mickey McFarlin ’98. “I needed a change.” Already with two young children 15 months apart, Crouch saw a big need in Little Rock for an indoor play place for kids. So in 2005, the two friends started talking about opening a place of their own.

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“I really needed something because I was going stir crazy with two young kids at home,” admits Crouch, whose husband Dr. Matt Crouch ’99 was in medical residency for child psychiatry at the time. “That’s one of the reasons I wanted to start a business.” “We did a lot of research,” Crouch says. They briefly considered franchise jump house businesses before finding inspiration in more creative play places like Magic House in St. Louis, Mo. “We wanted something simple, educational, and imaginative, where kids could be creative,” Crouch said. “Kids are happy when they have a space to explore and play.” That space is now The Wonder Place in the Breckenridge Village shopping center off of Rodney Parham in Little Rock, which opened in 2006 and has since become a perennial family favorite in local business guides and awards, earning numerous honors for favorite indoor playground, best birthday party facility, and awesome rainy day activity. But it took one year and three different banks before they could get a business loan for their big idea. “They [the banks] just didn’t understand,” Crouch says. “We’re not a nonprofit like a museum. We’re not a day care, and we’re not Jump Zone or Chucky Cheese.” “We don’t fit in anywhere still,” adds McFarlin.

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Photo by Mike Kemp

“I think our biggest challenge was being young women,” Crouch says. “In this type of situation, getting a loan was harder. And working with contractors, you kind of have to earn respect, and working with customers … Certain things made me more aware of a sense of double standard we deal with.” “Not everyone is encouraging,” McFarlin agrees. “There was a lot of questioning because we were young and female.” “But it’s always really satisfying when they come back and say, ‘Wow, I’m impressed. I get it. We really had fun’,” Crouch says. “It’s nice when they realize you’re doing a good job.” “And when you’re changing the way people play with kids. We’re a different play experience,” says McFarlin, adding that there is no television, no tickets for cheap plastic toy prizes, and no video games. “It’s not always comfortable at first, but that’s part of the experience. You are engaged with your child and creating memories.” MarFarlin, who babysat in college and worked as a nanny in graduate school, became a mother a year after becoming a business owner. Though neither partner majored in business, they believed their liberal arts background helped prepare them to become business owners. “Because of Hendrix we both felt empowered and this is something we could definitely do,” says Crouch, adding that their writing background helped when it came time to put together a business plan. “Not that I wasn’t scared, but I felt like I was capable because I’m a wellrounded person. And we have each other and each other’s support.” Their friendship started even before Hendrix. Both Northeast Arkansas natives (Crouch is from Wynne, McFarlin is from Blytheville), they were both active in the United Methodist Church. Crouch was looking for a small school and Hendrix “just clicked” the first time she and her parents visited campus. McFarlin knew Hendrix from attending church conferences with her mother, a United Methodist minister who is currently retired. Both were United Methodist Youth Fellowship (UMYF) scholars at Hendrix. Crouch was a member of the Hendrix Choir, where she met her future husband. McFarlin studied abroad through Hendrix-in-London

and worked for Cathy Goodwin in the Department of Religion, an invaluable crash course in time management and organization for a future business owner, she says. “Cathleen is better at the business end of it,” confesses Crouch, explaining how they originally divided up the duties. “I initially handled the themes, events, and birthday parties, and she was in charge of the finances, budget, and employees.” “I have a lot of friends I couldn’t be business partners with. There’s something about us. We can be honest with each other, and that has been our strong suit as far as being business partners,” she says. “It takes lots of communication and deep respect for each other going at it the right way.” “I am able to separate business and friendship when necessary,” McFarlin adds. “And it helps that we both care a lot about each other.” The strength of their partnership was tested five years ago when Crouch moved to northwest Arkansas, where her husband now works. “It was really hard for me, but I knew that this is what I need to do for me and my family. She was supportive. That made me realize how strong our business partnership is,” she says. “That was a difficult time for us, but we had a routine and were more confident.” In 2011, the two agreed to take on a third partner, Stephanie Dyer, whose husband is Mark Dyer ’98. They continue to keep their eyes open for ways to improve their customers’ experience. “We’ve changed and simplified,” McFarlin says. They’ve done away with push toys like shopping carts and wheel barrows, added containers to better organize the faux foods in the play café. They started with one party room, which wasn’t enough to accommodate the demand. So, they added four new and bigger party rooms. The Wonder Place now offers a summer program and art classes, which started last year. They look forward to hosting more classes in the future, including Kinder Music and Baby Signs, McFarlin says. They also want to be more proactive about hosting nonprofit events and continuing to give back to the community, Crouch says. A regular contributor to silent auctions and fundraising events, that connection to the community is very important to them, McFarlin adds. Most of the changes have been intuitive, Crouch says. But there have been some surprises, some of which are pleasant. For example, revenue from birthday parties and regular admission is more equal than they initially expected, and their retail section, which sells high-quality wooden toys, is doing much better than they thought it would, Crouch says. And some things are just … surprising. “I didn’t think about teaching social skills [to employees],” Crouch says. “That just didn’t come to me intuitively that we would be doing that.” Empowering their young staff to solve problems is another challenge. “As a mom, you have to fix it,” says Crouch, adding that helping employees to feel comfortable fixing problems is one of the hardest things to learn as a business owner. “I have high expectations,” admits McFarlin, who worked in food service as a college student. “But I tell them, ‘It’s because I know your potential and I know you can do this.’” Just as they balance friendship and partnership, the owners balance business and family. “We’ve outsourced some things,” Crouch says. “Because you have to give up some control to be with family.” “There will probably be a time when we want to pass the torch,” McFarlin says. “But this is a labor of love. We put our heart and soul into it … and it all comes back on us.” Story by Rob O’Connor ’95, Managing Editor

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Hendrix Magazine | Spring 2013 27

From Shoot the Bull to Talk Business

Roby Brock ’88 was a business major going into the final trimester of his sophomore year. “I had cost accounting and Shakespeare,” recalls Brock, now a veteran journalist who founded Talk Business, a comprehensive media source for Arkansas business and political news. “And I liked Shakespeare a lot better.” “Today, I’m in business and communication,” says Brock, who became an English major. “That’s what I focused on at Hendrix. I rely on my accounting, English, and writing classes every day.” Born in Fayetteville and raised in Little Rock, Brock, a Hall High School graduate, got his first glimpse of the Hendrix campus at Arkansas Governor’s School. “AGS kind of introduced me to the Hendrix campus,” says Brock, who was recruited to Hendrix by longtime admission counselor Jack Frost ’72. Brock’s step-father is Michael McBryde ’67, and his brother is Chris Brock ’92. Brock and his AGS roommate David Taylor ’88 lived in East Hall for two years then moved to Martin Hall. At Hendrix, Brock played soccer, then a club sport, and intramurals. Though not yet interested in partisan politics, he was active in student government, serving as Student

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Senate president his senior year. But Brock never took advantage of the opportunity at Hendrix to study overseas; something he felt was missing from his experience. So after graduation, while his friends were starting their first after-college jobs, he sold his car and traveled abroad. With London as his home base, he traveled around the continent. “I wanted to see the places I’d read about,” explains Brock. “It was a great life-learning experience about how to manage my time and money, how to get from A to B, and where to sleep and eat … survival.” “It was really good for my independence, and I just grew a lot and matured a lot,” he says. “I just wish I had had wisdom to turn it into a two-year tour.” When he came home, he worked as a marketing director for an accounting firm until he and a friend decided to open Shoot

the Bull, a “burgers and cheese dip” restaurant in the “bottom of the Rock” area off of Cantrell Road in Little Rock. During his three-year run as a small business owner, Brock managed 25 full-time and part-time employees ranging from “40-yearold employees to high school dropouts and everything in between,” and oversaw inventory, marketing, and advertising. One day at lunch, Barbara Yates, a partner in the accounting firm he had worked for, asked Brock if he would plan “the world’s watch party” in downtown Little Rock for the Clinton presidential campaign. Brock managed the event’s budget and coordinated the necessary logistics with Southwestern Bell, Entergy, and city planners, including city infrastructure upgrades to get 225 satellite trucks cabled into downtown Little Rock. On the night of the election, Brock noticed then-Lt. Gov. Jim Guy Tucker, who appeared to be lost in the crowd. Brock left his post and took Tucker and his wife Betty through the Secret Service routes to be where they needed to be. When Tucker thanked him for his help, Brock told him, “Remember my name.” Two weeks later, Brock was on the new Governor’s transition team as a résumé coordinator. “All the Clinton people were leaving and I

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Photo by Joshua Daugherty

Roby Brock ’88 builds business based on experience and seizing opportunity

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A Big Idea In the late 1990s, Brock had an idea for a video news segment for parents. In addition to interviewing experts on issues affecting children, Brock, who had continued to work with youth at his church, had the big idea to interview kids themselves. He pitched the idea to Channel 7’s Bob Steel, formed a production company, and put the pilot and follow-up segments together. The series was a success, running in 10 markets across the South. When his original production partners left for Atlanta, Ga., Brock formed a new freelance video production company. Realizing that losing a client meant losing 50 percent of his income, he needed an idea for stabilizing his revenue. At the time, no one was offering in-depth state business and political news and analysis on television, so Brock positioned his production company to fill the void by interviewing newsmakers in business, education, and government. And it worked. He began Talk Business in 1999 with a weekly television show, which immediately

found an advertising audience, and built it steadily, adding a website in 2003, then a radio presence, including National Public Radio affiliates in Arkansas, followed by a magazine, e-newsletter, and now social media. “There was no game plan. It just evolved,” Brock admits. “I didn’t set out to build this … just to extend it.” The growth of Talk Business, Brock says, is the result of recognizing opportunity for new venues. He has formed strategic partnerships with Stephens Media and Fox News. “I keep my eyes open and when something reaches critical mass, it’s probably worth doing, so I try it,” he says. Three years ago, Brock developed another dimension to Talk Business’s state political coverage when he and Hendrix politics professor Dr. Jay Barth ’87, who beat Brock for the Student Senate presidency during Barth’s senior year, began collaborating on political polls to check the pulse of Arkansas voters. The polls created a huge spike in web traffic for Talk Business and drew national

Photo by Joshua Daugherty

didn’t want to go to D.C.,” he says. “I thought there was a lot of opportunity in Arkansas politics.” He was right. Brock worked for Gov. Tucker on a special legislative session on Medicaid and two subsequent sessions. He was on the House chamber floor when President Clinton officially resigned as Arkansas Governor. In 1996, Brock was tapped to head the State Board of Election Commissioners, a previously fledgling state agency that had gained new responsibility in 1995 to oversee elections and poll worker pay. With no formal office, Brock worked from “a cubby hole in the basement of the capitol.” With no blueprint, his only real directive for the essentially start-up agency was “Figure it out.” “It was problem solving 101,” said Brock, who was tasked with making all election expenses uniform. It was also trial by fire. Brock’s first year included five elections, a primary, a run-off, a general election, and two special elections called by Gov. Tucker.

Roby Brock ’88 delivers live business and political news on Fox 16’s Talk Business Arkansas segments broadcast from the Nexstar Broadcasting, Inc. studios in Little Rock.

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Learning Legacy This fall, Brock’s stepson Baker Helton ’17 will be a Hendrix freshman and member of the Warrior baseball team. A proud parent, Brock looks forward to driving back to campus for family weekends and ball games with his wife, Stephanie, and their two other children, Tucker and Conley. He also looks forward to the chance for Helton to grow, just as Brock did when he went to his stepfather’s alma mater. “Hendrix will give him tools to take his confidence into the world and follow his life dreams,” says Brock, who credits Hendrix with giving him the tools to grow his business. “Hendrix taught me to approach any subject pretty fearlessly and pretty critically. Nothing really intimidates me in the world because I think Hendrix taught me you don’t have to be an expert to find the experts, explore and take something away and be enlightened and be a better contributor to something.” “When you see some of the problems we’re facing in the country, I don’t necessarily think a liberal arts education will solve everything,” he says. “But openness to different thought,

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Photograph from the U.S. Coast Guard Collection in the U.S. National Archives.

attention for their coverage of Arkansas’ U.S. Senate and House races and medical marijuana ballot initiatives. Understanding the audience is also integral to his success. “The different experiences I’ve had as an adult gave me a perspective that readers, viewers, listeners have and appreciate,” he says. His experiences in business and government also help when speaking to news subjects. “I know how to extract news out of them,” Brock says. Brock admits he’s learned his share of lessons. His quarterly magazine struggled after the recession, so he scaled its publication back to yearly and partnered with publishing veteran Vicki Vowell of AY magazine. “That combination is very mutually beneficial, and it’s freed me up to focus on content,” he says. Sharing resources through strategic partnerships is critical, and so is sharing the spotlight, Brock says. “I didn’t start out to be a media personality on camera, but I couldn’t make the numbers work without me on camera,” he says. “I’m the face of the franchise right now and, for the long run, that’s going to have to moderate a bit,” Brock says. “My goal over the next 10 years is to bring up some talent to carry that mantle. And I think we’re now at a state where other bylines can represent the brand.”

This U.S. National Archives image of Army troops wading ashore on Omaha Beach during the D-Day landings, June 6, 1944, was used in Survivors, a documentary produced by Roby Brock ’88, which featured Arkansas veterans of World War II. The project was honored by the Society of Professional Journalists. lack of fear of being independent, and the ability to think with a more long-term view are pretty beneficial qualities for leaders in business and politics.” Brock’s business experience has also given him perspective on how higher education can continue to be relevant in Arkansas and in the world. “In general, higher education needs a lot of diversified business models, and it needs different perspectives, including the liberal arts,” he says. “There’s a need for specialized works and a need for learners who gain knowledge from bigger picture understanding.” “And just as in business, schools have to recognize opportunities when they exist and find ways to capitalize on opportunities in ways that don’t take you away from your core mission,” he says. “You can’t sit still, and Hendrix is no different. They’ve identified ways to do things differently from their peers, but they’ve also stayed true to who they are.”

Saluting Survivors In Talk Business’ nearly 15 years, Brock has interviewed more than 1,000 leaders in Arkansas business, education, politics and public affairs. He received the 2009 Small Business Journalist of the Year award from the U.S. Small Business Administration. For Brock, one project stands out among his

award-winning work. A dozen years ago, he met a group of Arkansan World War II veterans, including veterans of the Battle of the Bulge, Midway, and Normandy. “I wanted to tell their stories,” he says. “Unprompted, they all said, ‘I’m not a hero, I’m a survivor’.” Humbled by their collective modesty, Brock titled the resulting documentary Survivors. On the encouragement of one of the subjects, Pat Murphy, a former public relations professional for Southwestern Bell, Brock submitted the “project of personal pride” to the Society of Professional Journalists Awards and won. After receiving the award, Brock was invited back to Arkansas Governor’s School to speak. He accepted on the condition that he bring Murphy and interview him in front of the students. “After an hour, we got done and a bunch of kids came up to the stage. They all surrounded Pat, not a single one came to me,” he says, more than pleased that the students were appropriately interested in Murphy’s experience and not Brock’s media personality. Murphy died two months later, Brock remembers. “I was glad I had that last ride up there and back.” Story by Rob O’Connor ’95, Managing Editor

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Service Above Self

Maia Yang ’13 sees the big picture through the liberal arts lens

Foreground photo by Joshua Daugherty; Courtesy photos in background

Dehydrated and stricken with the parasite Giardia, Maia Yang ’13 was in a mountainside hospital during monsoon season in India after being bitten by a monkey. When the hospital’s power went out, a bat flew by her face. “It was terrifying,” recalls Yang, who was in India during the summer between her sophomore and junior year. “And so fun at the same time.” She received a service stipend from the Hendrix Miller Center for Vocation, Ethics and Calling to work with the exiled Tibetan community in India. In the morning, she volunteered at Rogpa, a day care center for Tibetan children whose parents worked or were single parents who could not afford childcare. In the afternoon, she taught English to Tibetan monks at the Dalai Lama’s Temple. Working with Tibetan refugees made her think of her family’s history. Yang’s father, a physician, left his native southern China homeland to flee communism and completed his undergraduate education in the United States before going to medical school in Canada, where Maia was born. “I was able to think of my family and how they fled China, so there was a connection,” she says. When she was 3-years-old, the family moved to Hot Springs, Ark., where Maia grew up. Coming from a relatively small school and small town, Yang was drawn to the close-knit community at Hendrix. “I liked the fact that it was smaller community,” says Yang, whose sister is Carrie Yang ’15. “I wanted to be able to recognize faces and have the chance for more one-onone interactions with professors.”

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“I came in thinking I’d be pre-med, but I really didn’t know. I’m a very pragmatic person, and I looked at several different options,” says Yang, an economics and business major. “Business and economics was a good route for me.” “For a major, I loved the practicality of it. I love economics and studying political trends through the lens of economics. That’s really interesting to me,” says Yang. Yang will also earn a minor degree in philosophy. Her ethics and commerce class with philosophy professor Dr. Chris Campolo introduced her to the intersection of philosophy and economics. “Originally I thought I’d go into finance and find a well-paying job,” says Yang, who volunteered at a Morgan Stanley Smith Barney office during the summer after her freshman year. “But I absolutely hated it.” Her experience in India was much more formative, she says. “It was by far the biggest learning curve of my college experience. It was my first time out of the United States by myself,” she explains. “That really changed me. I became more confident in my capabilities. It grounded me.” “Not just being alone but being sick really made me grow,” says Yang. “I had to rely solely on myself. It forces you outside of your bubble.” Last summer, Yang received a Project Pericles public service fellowship to pursue a project she designed. Working with La Peña, in Austin, Texas, she collected stories from Hispanic female business owners about their

triumphs and trials starting a business as a woman. Yang published the stories on a website. That project gave her perspective on her senior economics thesis on microfinance. Working with economics professor Dr. Tom Stanley, Yang utilized two systematic reviews to conduct a small meta-analysis and wrote a section summarizing the problems within microfinance and discussed the policy implications that may result. While research doesn’t support microfinance as a means to substantially reduce global poverty, it’s a “piece of the puzzle,” says Yang. “There are some things you can’t quantify with empirical research,” says Yang, recalling a Tibetan holiday ceremony she witnessed in India where beggars lined a path for miles. “I had never seen so many people who needed basic resources … That bothered me. I saw microfinance as a possible tool for change.” This spring, Yang was awarded a Thomas J. Watson Fellowship to study microfinance in Bangladesh, Rwanda, Vietnam and Peru. Yang ultimately will go to graduate school or law school. She can see herself as a developmental economics professor or using her Mandarin language skills in business law. “I would never trade my liberal arts experience for anything,” she says. “I wouldn’t have had so many options because I took so many different classes and different perspectives ranging from ancient philosophy and ethics to economics and policy. It’s a higher sort of thinking to take two different lines of thought and find connections between them. Liberal arts education allows you to think critically and that translates to the real world … The world is not a one-way track.” Story by Rob O’Connor ’95, Managing Editor

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Photo by Bob Handelman

Let’s Get Engaged New Freshmen Course Coming in Fall 2013 This fall semester marked the end of the Journeys course for incoming freshmen. Next fall, the class of 2017 will take part in The Engaged Citizen (TEC) course, a new freshmen experience developed by Hendrix faculty. The Engaged Citizen is an interdisciplinary seminar. Professors come together across disciplines and form teaching dyads made up of two professors and focus on a topic that relates to the overarching theme of being an engaged citizen. Each professor will approach their shared theme from their particular disciplinary perspective. Incoming students will be given brief summaries of the available topics and will rank their top choices. Thirty or so students will be divided between the two professors, and the classes will rotate so students interact with each of the dyad’s two instructors. Dr. Jay Barth ’87 is a member of the faculty committee overseeing the development of the new course. The course is “right on track,” and the faculty response has been positive. “The team of faculty who form the working group to implement the new course have been struck by how much enthusiasm there is for participating in the course among faculty,” Barth says. The course has been well received by the natural science faculty particularly, he adds. One reason the faculty began considering alternatives to Journeys was that some science faculty members expressed discomfort teaching a course that was mostly made up of material far outside their own disciplines. The Engaged Citizen, which allows faculty

34 Hendrix Magazine | Spring 2013

to use and teach from their disciplinary perspectives, sought to resolve this issue and promote a more interdisciplinary experience for incoming freshmen. In addition to promoting an interdisciplinary approach, the new course better prepares students for the unique requirements of Your Hendrix Odyssey: Engaging in Active Learning. “It gives the premium we place on civic engagement a prominent place in the curriculum, and it gets students involved in an Odyssey-like experience from their first semester,” says Hendrix Provost Dr. Robert L. Entzminger. Barth agrees. “This new course will provide incoming students an introduction to engaged learning tied to course content, something that students will continue to flesh out on their own through their Odyssey experiences. It will also provide students an explicitly interdisciplinary analysis of a topic in the first semester,” he says. “Both engaged learning and interdisciplinarity are hallmarks of the liberal arts experience at Hendrix and students will be introduced to them from the get-go.”

The Engaged Citizen will include the following 15 approved dyads for fall 2013: Religion, History, and Identity in Asia Spirituality and the Creative Arts Engaged Art Poverty: Why Our Communities Need the Engaged Citizen The Art of Subversion The Evolved Citizen: On the Origin of Human Life, Mind and Values Sex and Gender Origins and Ethics Writing Changing Places The Great Depression: Economics, History and Politics Images of Politics, Power and Civil Society Slaves, Revolutionaries and Citizens: The Haitian Revolution in History and Literature Engagement, Happiness, and the Good Life Enhanced Humans and Magic Pills Ethics, Story, and Social Transformation

Story by Rachel Thomas ’14

www.hendrix.edu

New boutique hopes to grow as The Village at Hendrix expands On Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving 2012, Conway, Ark., native Caroline LeVan opened Monrow, a new women’s boutique in The Village at Hendrix.

Image courtesy of Polk Stanley Wilcox

Photo by Joshua Daugherty

“I just loved the aesthetic of The Village and how it’s its own little community,” she said about her choice of location for her new business. Monrow is located between ZAZA Fine Pizza and Salad and Village Books, the Hendrix bookstore operated by Barnes & Noble. The new 2,500-square-foot store sells women’s clothes, shoes, bags, and accessories to a wide age range, 13-year-olds to 65-year-olds, LeVan said. “It has been great,” she said, adding that sales this year have already been “better than anyone would have thought.” Five years in the making, The Village at Hendrix is making a business of exceeding expectations. “I think we’ve been able to get the project moving substantially forward despite significant headwinds in the real estate market because of the College’s commitment to making the space fantastic,” said The Village CEO Ward Davis. “And now that that’s evident, we’re reaping the rewards of it.” said Davis, who expects more big commercial projects in The Village Half of The Village’s 40 homes occupied or under construction were over the next two to three years. “There will be even more to do and that sold in the last 12 months, said Davis, who expects 57 to 65 singlemakes it appealing.” family homes and 10 to 15 cottages to be completed and occupied That bodes well for new businesses like Monrow, LeVan agreed. within the next seven to eight months. “We’re big fans of The Village, and we hope that as it grows, “Once there are 30 occupied homes, it feels like a neighborhood,” we grow too.” said Davis. “It’s definitely a different product for people who put a high value on community living … That’s why we continue to be fastest Story by Rob O’Connor ’95, Managing Editor selling neighborhood in Conway.” Nearly 200 people live in The Village now, and that number will double in the next two years, Davis said. With 18 apartments and student housing above the two commercial buildings, The Village’s demographics are diffuse, ranging from students, to recent graduates, and young couples to empty nesters. Among The Village residents are Hendrix alumni Melanie Dorman Siegel ’85, Jack Frost ’72 and Sarah Weir Frost ’72, and Dr. David Baker ’84, as well as several faculty and staff members, including chief information officer David Hinson, kinesiology professor Danny Henderson, swimming coach Jim Kelly, and biology professor Dr. Mark Sutherland and their families. Anchoring the commercial district will be the new Market Square South project, a 30,000 square-foot mixed-use building currently under construction. Market Square South will include a restaurant and bank on the first floor and student “living-learning” space on the upper floors. “That project helps close off the square and gives a Market Square South project, a mixed-use building currently under construction in great core to our commercial area that we can really build The Village at Hendrix, will include “living-learning” space for Hendrix students above a off of for a more vibrant commercial and retail center,” bank and restaurant on the first floor.

www.hendrix.edu

Hendrix Magazine | Spring 2013 35

the village at hendrix

Village of Dreams

Photo by Cody Usher

Connor Silvestri ’13 and Tresor Mukiza ’13 traveled very different paths to Hendrix, where they played a major part in the most successful era of NCAA Division III soccer at Hendrix. This season, the Warriors set a school record with 10 victories and eight shutouts. Silvestri, a senior chemistry major from Conway, was part of one of the most successful Arkansas high school teams. Recruited by other schools, Hendrix was the only NCAA Division III on his list. Fortunately for the Warriors, his friend Dylan Reed ’13 and Little Rock Catholic High friendly rival Grant Womack ’13 had come to Hendrix. In Three Musketeer all-for-one fashion, Silvestri signed up too. Among Silvestri’s several awards this year are Capital One CoSIDA Academic All-District, All-SAA First Team, NSCAA All-West Region Third Team, and NSCAA Scholar All-South Region First Team. Silvestri also earned AllRegion Second Team honors in 2010 was named to the Third Team in 2011. He capped

36 Hendrix Magazine | Spring 2013

Photo by Bradley Whidding

Photo by Cody Usher

athletics The Dynamic Duo

his collegiate soccer career as the Warriors’ alltime leading scorer (44 goals and 103 points), setting the mark his sophomore season, then reclaiming it after Duncan Keegan ’12 broke it last year. Silvestri ranked third in the Southern Athletic Association with nine goals and 22 points to go with four assists. After graduation, Silvestri will attend dental school at the University of Tennessee in Memphis. He wants to study general dentistry and eventually assist in mission work overseas. While Silvestri traveled several city blocks to go to college, Mukiza crossed many time zones from his native Kigali, Rwanda, on his first plane flight, to attend Hendrix through the Rwanda Presidential Scholars Program. Though he played soccer in Rwanda, Mukiza only played intramural soccer his first year at Hendrix. Ian Evans ’12, now the assistant soccer coach at Hendrix, got a glimpse of Mukiza’s skill when Evans’ intramural team, previously undefeated, was beaten handily by Mukiza’s team. “I told him, ‘You have to play,’” Evans said. “I’m proud to have played with those two great student-athletes [Tresor and Connor] and to have become good friends with them as well.” Playing intercollegiate soccer was a good way to learn about American culture, Mukiza said. “It gave me an opportunity to meet guys who I shared a passion with,” he said. “It couldn’t have been any better.” “Since my high school years, I have been helped by my teachers and coaches, and that continued when I got to Hendrix,” said Mukiza, citing men’s soccer coach Doug Mello and faculty members Dr. Tom Goodwin, Dr. George Harper, Dr. Duff Campbell and instructor Michael Bell. “All the teachers here are dedicated to helping students do well in their studies and the Hendrix community was also supportive.” Mukiza started in 14 games and scored two goals and had two assists before suffering a season-ending injury. A biology major and chemistry minor with 4.00 grade point average, Mukiza was selected to the Capital One Academic All-America Division III Third Team by the College Sports Information Directors of America. Having grown up in war-torn Rwanda, Mukiza wants to go to medical school and study family medicine. “I want to go back home and serve and be a doctor,” he said. “There are people who have to walk miles to a hospital and I want to live my life for something good.”

All American Girl Elizabeth Krug ’14 became a three-time AllAmerican this spring by placing fifth in the pentathlon at the NCAA Division III Indoor National Championships in Naperville, Ill. The Heber Springs native scored a school record 3,387 points. She adds to her collection of two AllAmerican honors in the heptathlon at the last two Outdoor Championships. Krug broke three school records at the Championships, including a personal best 3,387 points in the pentathlon. She also set a new school record 2:24.90 in the 800 meters, finishing sixth in the event and set a new mark in the 60 meter hurdles, finishing sixth in 9.34 seconds.

New Recruits Jordan Neal has been named the offensive coordinator of the rebooted Hendrix football program. Neal comes to Hendrix after a stint as the offensive line coach for Texas Lutheran University in Seguin. Reed Heim is the Warriors’ defensive coordinator. Heim comes to Hendrix from Jesuit College Prep in Dallas where he was the linebackers coach and special teams coordinator and served as the assistant director of athletic performance. David Batson was named offensive line coach. Batson comes to Hendrix from Louisiana College, where he played for and worked with Warrior head coach Justin “Buck” Buchanan.

www.hendrix.edu

Hoop & Holler Hendrix College freshman guard Caitlin Kriesl-Bigler ’16 was named to D3Hoops.com Team of the Week this spring. The Austin, Texas, native guard averaged 24.0 points, 5.0 assists and 2.0 steals per game as the Warriors won back-to-back games for the first time this season. In a win against Oglethorpe University, Kriesel-Bigler tied the school record with eight 3-pointers made, en route to a seasonhigh 29 points. She also dished out five assists and had three steals against the Lady Petrels. Kriesel-Bigler followed up with 19 points, five assists and a steal against Berry. On the weekend, she shot 42.5 percent (17-of-40) from the field, 47.8 percent (11-of-23) from three-point range and 100 percent (3-of-3) from the free throw line. Kriesel-Bigler was named Southern Athletic Association Player of the Week.

Too Cool for Pool John Byford ’14 won the 400-yard individual medley by besting his own school record in 4:13.58. The Oklahoma City native also took third in the 200-yard freestyle with a school record of 1:44.45, breaking a 28-yearold record of 1:44.74 set in 1985 by Paul Henry ’88. Jo Claire Robertson ’14 claimed the firstplace medal in the 100-yard backstroke, finishing in 58 seconds.

Image courtesy of Fennell Purifoy Architects

Men’s soccer coach Doug Mello received a Letter of Commendation for earning his 700th career win by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America at the annual national convention in Indianapolis on March 1. With 36 years in men’s and 25 years in women’s head coaching experience, Mello has 707 career wins, including 39 at Hendrix. He has coached 1,141 contests, the most in collegiate soccer history. Mello has also coached at Luther College, University of the Southwest, Siena Heights University and his alma mater Aquinas College. He is the only coach in collegiate history to reach the 300 men’s and 250 women’s victories milestone and one of two coaches in all of college soccer to reach 700 wins in their career. Mello is ranked 15th among active men’s coaches in career wins with 425. He also has 282 victories as a women’s head coach. This past season, Mello’s Warriors set new school records with 10 wins and eight shutouts.

athletics

Mello Gold

Top of the Mound

Ball-Halla

Pitcher Jacob Perschke ’14 was selected the Southern Athletic Association Pitcher of the Week. On the following day, the Katy, Texas, native was chosen for D3Baseball.com’s National Team of the Week. Perschke struck out 13 batters, the third most in school history, in nine innings at Mary Hardin-Baylor. He allowed one run, seven hits and no walks in the no-decision effort.

Hendrix broke ground this spring on a new Athletics Performance Center with locker rooms, an athletic training room, a weight room, and classrooms to serve more than 300 student-athletes. The project will be complete in fall 2013. An indoor tennis facility will be built adjacent to the center, and there are plans for a new grass practice field and an indoor practice facility.

2013 Football Schedule Date Sept. 7, 2013

Opponent Westminster College

Sept. 14, 2013 Birmingham-Southern College* Sept. 28, 2013 Southwestern University

Location

Time

Conway, Ark.

1 p.m.

Birmingham, Ala.

1 p.m.

Conway, Ark.

12 p.m.

Jackson, Miss.

1 p.m.

Oct. 5, 2013

Millsaps College*

Oct. 12, 2013

Washington University in St. Louis

Conway, Ark.

1 p.m.

Oct. 19, 2013

Berry College*

Conway, Ark.

1 p.m.

Oct. 26, 2013

Austin College

Sherman, Texas

1 p.m.

Nov. 2, 2013

Centre College*

Danville, Ky.

1:30 p.m.

Nov. 9, 2013

Rhodes*

Conway, Ark.

1 p.m.

Nov. 16, 2013

Sewanee*

Conway, Ark.

12 p.m.

* Conference Games

www.hendrix.edu

Hendrix Magazine | Spring 2013 37

alumni news

Be in the middle of the fun at Alumni Weekend 2013 Hendrix alumni will converge on Conway April 19-21 for Alumni Weekend 2013. Join your classmates for a fun-filled weekend with plenty of pauses to relive your college days and catch up with friends. The Alumni Welcome Center opens at 9 a.m. on Friday, April 19 and the first big event of the weekend is the induction of the Class of 1963 into the Half Century Club during a luncheon beginning at 11 a.m. After lunch, the Altus Bell Society is host for a reception for the new Half Century members in the parlor of Galloway Hall. Saturday highlights include an alumni Water Warrior swim meet with Coach Jim Kelly at 8 a.m. in the Courtway Pool, the Alumni Association Awards Brunch at 11 a.m., BBQ at noon, a reception honoring retiring faculty, rehearsal and performance by the alumni choir, a lecture by Provost Robert Entzminger, a celebration of 10 years of the Lilly Center/Miller Center, and class parties to round out the day. The weekend wraps up with the Alumni Memorial Worship Service featuring the Alumni Choir in Greene Chapel at 10:30 a.m. on Sunday morning and lunch in the cafeteria from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. For a complete schedule of events and to register online, visit the Alumni Weekend website at www.hendrix.edu/alumniweekend.

Six alumni join the Hendrix Warrior Hall of Honor On Friday evening, April 19, the Warrior Booster Club welcomes six new members to the Hendrix Hall of Honor:

Larry Fincher ’64 from Waldo, Ark., a four-year letterman in basketball for the Warriors.

The late Roy Wilson ’17 of Atkins, Ark., a standout football player who also participated in basketball and track. Judge B.R. Wilson ’62 will accept the award on behalf of his father.

Nick Lasker ’88, a four-year basketball letterman who has become a successful coach.

The late Winfield Botts ’28 of Dewitt, Ark., a four-sport letterman in football, basketball, track and baseball. Mary Carr will accept the award on his behalf. The late Jon Guthrie ’56, who played basketball as a student and, when he returned to Hendrix as a staff member, was a Warrior ambassador and founding board member of the Warrior Booster Club. Holly Guthrie Martin will accept the award on his behalf.

38 Hendrix Magazine | Spring 2013

Paul Henry ’88 from Fayetteville, Ark., was a 4-year swimming letterman who still holds a number of records set during his Hendrix years. The Warrior Booster Club Hall of Honor banquet begins at 6 p.m. in the Worsham Student Performance Hall in the Student Life and Technology Center. Tickets are $30 per person and can be purchased online at www.hendrix.edu/alumniweekend.

Get “Mugged” at Alumni Weekend One of the most popular features on the Hendrix College Alumni & Friends Facebook page are “mug shots” of alumni who stop by the Alumni Office on the first floor of Fausett Hall to pick up their orange alumni mugs. Join in the fun when you visit the registration desk in The Burrow on Saturday, April 20. You can pick up your Hendrix mug and get your mug shot taken during registration!

www.hendrix.edu

alumni news

Alumni Association Honors Four Alumni The 2013 Alumni Association Award winners include:

Ruth Elizabeth Teague Workman ’50

Humanitarian Award

As the daughter and wife of Methodist ministers, Liz Workman has been active in social justice issues most of her life. She has been an active member of the state and local chapters of Church Women United and has served on the boards ERArkansas, the League of Women Voters and Peace Links Worldwide. In addition to her civic and church involvement, Mrs. Workman, who earned a master’s degree from the University of Central Arkansas in 1970, taught special education in the Little Rock Public Schools for ten years and is the mother of four adult children and grandmother of seven.

James E. Major Service Award Rev. William B. Smith of Dallas, Texas, is retired from the staff of Highland Park United Methodist Church, where he worked from 1968 until 2012. He has worked tirelessly to raise the profile of Hendrix College in the Dallas area. After graduating from Hendrix in 1963, Rev. Smith, a native of Gillett, Ark., earned a master of theology degree from the Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University. He has served on the Alumni Board of Governors for more than 20 years, has served as president of the Hendrix Alumni Association, as the national chair of the Hendrix Alumni Loyalty Fund, and a member of the Board of Trustees since 2009.

Ruth Elizabeth Teague Workman ’50

Hayes Carll ’98

Outstanding Young Alumnus Award After graduating from Hendrix in 1998, Houston, Texas, native Hayes Carll returned to the Lone Star State to hone his highly original songwriting and performing skills. He released two independent albums, Flowers and Liquor (2002) and Little Rock (2005) and quickly captured critical praise from fans and fellow artists. His third album Trouble in Mind (2008) included “She Left Me for Jesus,” which won Song of the Year at the 7th Annual Americana Music Association Honors and Awards. Carll’s “Another Like You” was American Songwriter magazine’s #1 Song of 2011 and his latest album KMAG YOYO was the Americana Music Association’s #1 Album.

Learn more about these outstanding alumni while you connect with classmates and friends at Alumni Weekend 2013. Your Alumni Weekend registration fee includes tickets to either the Alumni Association Awards Brunch or the alumni BBQ. Please specify which you wish to attend when you register. For more information about Alumni Weekend visit www.hendrix.edu/alumniweekend.

www.hendrix.edu

Courtesy photo

What Dr. Sanford describes as an “encounter with God” inspired him to study the human brain, and thousands of children are glad that he did. Dr. Sanford received a medical degree from the University of Arkansas, completed neurosurgery training at the University of Mississippi, and became a pediatric neurosurgeon. In 1985, he helped start the pediatric brain tumor program at St. Jude Research Hospital in Memphis. He was professor of neurosurgery at the University of Tennessee until 2010, training 21 pediatric neurosurgeons and more than 60 other neurosurgeons during his tenure. Dr. Sanford received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Association of Neurological Surgeons in 2009.

Robert Alexander “Alex” Sanford ’63

Photo by Felisha Weaver

Distinguished Alumnus Award

William B. Smith ’63

Courtesy photo

Robert Alexander “Alex” Sanford ’63

Courtesy photo

Four Hendrix graduates will be in the spotlight on Alumni Weekend. The four will be honored by the Hendrix College Alumni Association during an awards brunch that begins at 11 a.m. on Saturday, April 20 in Worsham Performance Hall in the Student Life and Technology Center.

Hayes Carll ’98

Hendrix Magazine | Spring 2013 39

Who Attends Hendrix Events?

You Do!

One of our favorite things about what we do is the opportunity to visit with so many alumni and parents during events. During the 2012-2013 year, we in the Hendrix Office of Alumni and Constituent Engagement have had the chance to visit with you in more places, too.

We visited Little Rock for the Founders Day Reception at the Clinton Library; Nashville, Tenn., and North Little Rock, Ark., for two performances of A Service of Carols and Lessons with the choir; Los Angeles for a tour, reception, and performance at the Walt Disney Concert Hall; and the Seattle Art Museum for a docent-led tour of the Kenwood House exhibit and a reception.

Since June, we’ve welcomed more than a hundred alumni to our office, all wanting their “Hendrix mug shot.” If you stop by our office on the first floor of Fausett Hall, we’ll have an orange Hendrix mug waiting for you. We have a camera ready to snap a picture of you smiling with your mug. We promptly post your “Hendrix mug shot” on Facebook so everyone sees who visits.

Upcoming in 2013, we are looking forward to Alumni Weekend 2013, and events at The Walton Arts Center, Arkansas Arts Center, and Tanglewood Music Festival! A7

upcoming event

Hendrix at the Walton Arts Center Reception & War Horse performance thursday, may 23 Register at www.hendrix.edu/waltonarts A9

40 Hendrix Magazine | Spring 2013

A10

www.hendrix.edu

upcoming event

Founders Day Reception

Oct. 25, 2012, William J. Clinton Presidential Library, Little Rock, Ark.

Hendrix at the Arkansas Arts Center

A1 Jan Nelson Hundley ’80 and Odyssey Medal Recipient Dr. Bill Fiser ’75

Reception & viewing of Kenwood House exhibit

A2 Elizabeth Smith Small ’81, Billie Oholendt Dreher ’81, Lori Filogamo Jones ’81, Ruthie Thompson Bernabe ’81, Odyssey Medal Recipient Dee Davis Oberwetter ’81 and Tonya Hyatt ’81

friday, june 7 Register at www.hendrix.edu/arkarts

A3 Patrick Osam, M.D. ’70, Dr. Joseph Bates ’54, Dr. Larry Pearce ’70 and Dr. Bill Gibbs ’73 A4 Steve Pierce, Odyssey Medal Recipient Dr. Lorna Collins Pierce ’59 and Pamela Collins Van Wyck ’62 A5 Dr. John Faucett ’81, Odyssey Medal Recipient Bret Jones ’81 and Celeste Jones A6 Walter Pryor ’87, Dr. David Larson and Roger King ’76 A7 W. Ellis Arnold ’79, David Knight ’71, Christina Montana and Allen McGee ’61 A8 Marty Rhodes ’72, Wendy Wilson, and Larry Wilson A9 Ambassador Al Eastham ’73 and Shawn Johnson ’98

A10 Arkansas United Methodist Bishop Gary Mueller, Tricia Rhodes, and Rev. Vic Nixon ’62

upcoming event

Candlelight Carol Watch Parties December 2012

Hendrix at Tanglewood

B1 Watch Party in McKinney, Texas: Valerie Densmore, Aaron Cranor, Sarah Densmore ’00, Eric Jergensen, Laura Jergensen, Sharon Sullivan, Riana Jergensen

Reception & live broadcast of A Prairie Home Companion

B2 Watch Party in Washington, D.C.: Ryan Burwinkel ’10, Sarah Spencer ’11, Laura Owen ’10 and Sam Ginsberg ’09

saturday, june 29 Register at www.hendrix.edu/tanglewood

B3 Watch Party in Seattle, Wash.: Joshua Walker, Erin Blagg Walker ’07, Valerie Kimbrough ’07, Ben Linder, Mandi Hatfield Chappell ’04, and Michael Chappell ’03

Hendrix at the LA Philharmonic Jan. 19, 2013, Los Angeles, Calif.

C1 Douglas Wilson, Jason Helvey ’91, Carl Matthies, and Learden Logan Matthies ’95 C2 Hendrix at the LA Philharmonic attendees C3 Jeffrey Weaver and Kyle Wilson ’98 C4 Alfred Jaucian and Jamie Myers ’81 C5 Nancy Ferguson Watson ’95 and Spencer Watson

www.hendrix.edu

Hendrix Magazine | Spring 2013 41

development

Your Hendrix license plates make a difference at Hendrix. They are a great way to show pride in your alma mater and to support the exceptional work Hendrix is doing every day. If you don’t have one yet, you can purchase yours at any Arkansas Revenue Office, or visit www.hendrix.edu/alumni for a link to the Hendrix license plate request form. Thank you for supporting Hendrix!

Meet Cathryn ’15 “I’m an interdisciplinary studies major in psychology, philosophy and politics. This experience has been a combination of my professors guiding me in the right direction and my own determination to make my three loves come together in the right way. I love that I’m getting an education that’s not set in stone; I’m making it what I want it to be.” Cathryn McClellan ’15 of Dallas, Texas to watch cathryn’s video, visit www.hendrix.edu/giving We are able to offer this exceptional educational experience to students like Cathryn because of support from alumni, parents and friends. Please support the Hendrix Annual Fund with a gift by May 31.

42 Hendrix Magazine | Spring 2013

www.hendrix.edu

connecting with classmates 1954

Dr. Charles Brewer was awarded an honorary degree by Furman University during opening convocation on Aug. 30, 2012. Dr. Brewer, the William R. Kenan Jr., Professor of Psychology, has taught at Furman since 1967.

1960

Dr. Joe G. Hollyfield organized the XV International Retinal Degeneration Symposium July 16‑20, 2012 in Bad Gögging, Germany, attended by more than 200 scientists investigating the causes and treatment of inherited retinal diseases. While in Germany, he also participated in the Retina International Congress in Hamburg and the meeting of the International Society of Eye Research in Berlin.

1964

Chris Barrier published an article in the fall edition of The Arkansas Lawyer titled “Stranger in Town: Arkansas’s Single Action Rule.” He practices real estate law with the Mitchell Williams law firm

www.hendrix.edu

in Little Rock, and writes and illustrates a monthly column on real estate law.

1965

Vivian Lawson Hogue is a columnist for the 501 Life Magazine, writing nostalgic pieces emphasizing her life as a native of Conway. Hogue retired in 2010 after 23 years teaching art and history for Conway High Schools.

1967

Dr. Justin Tull has just completed his fifth book: Interim Ministry: Positive Change in Times of Transition. He is working to become a trainer of interim ministers for the United Methodist Church. His new website is JustinTull.com. He and his wife, Janette, live in Carrollton, Texas.

1971

Nell Meadows Doyle is a member of North Central Arkansas Master Naturalists, serving as publicity chair and working on hiking trail construction and maintenance, wildflower and herb gardens, and stream quality testing.

1974

H.G. Foster of Conway was appointed to a twoyear term as judge in the 20th Judicial District, 1st Division.

1976

Mark Denman was elected Mayor of the City of Nassau Bay, Texas, in May 2012. In July 2012, he was elected Chairman of the USA Rice Federation, an

industry organization that represents all rice millers, merchants and farmers in the U.S. Mark Jacob is the coauthor of two new books. With Stephen H. Case, he has written Treacherous Beauty: Peggy Shippen, the Woman Behind Benedict Arnold’s Plot to Betray America. Also, Mark, who is deputy editor of the Chicago Tribune, has co-written an e‑book, 10 Things You

Might Not Know About Nearly Everything, with Stephen Benzkofer, based on their popular newspaper feature.

1978

Mark A. Smith has started a consulting company offering services in the areas of radiation processing, radiation safety, nuclear security, and radioactive waste management. Clients range

Barkley Thompson leads Houston’s Christ Church Cathedral The Rev. Barkley Thompson ’95 is the ninth dean and 20th rector of Christ Church Cathedral in Houston, Texas. The historic Episcopal church founded in 1839 in downtown Houston is the parent of a dozen outreach organizations including The Beacon, a day center for the homeless. “Christ Church is able to serve as the agent of Christ’s love to an incredible range of people encompassing all walks of life. The Cathedral’s pursuit of justice, service and hospitality kindles my heart,” Thompson said. Previously, he served as rector of St. John’s Episcopal Church in Roanoke, Va., and led a “restart” parish in a Memphis, Tenn., suburb that grew to over 400 members in four years. Thompson is a trustee of the Seminary of the Southwest in Austin, Texas, where he earned a Master of Divinity

degree. He also holds a master’s degree in religious studies from the University of Chicago. He and his wife, Jill Benson Thompson ’94, have two children, Griffin and Eliza.

Hendrix Magazine | Spring 2013 43

alumnotes

Alumnotes

Share your news with other alumni by visiting www.hendrix.edu/alumni and using the online form. Information received after February 1 will appear in the fall edition.

alumnotes

Brian Ratcliff of El Dorado is the new President-Elect Designee of the Arkansas Bar Association. Brian is a partner with Shackleford, Phillips, & Ratcliff, P.A.

Sara Beth Mitchell ’10 Sara Beth Mitchell ’10 is an Inaugural Grattan Scholar in The School of Social Sciences and Philosophy at Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland. The new scholarships honor Irish statesman Henry Grattan (1746-1820), a graduate of Trinity, and are given to outstanding Ph.D. students to support their cutting-edge social science research and teaching. from medical device manufacturers using radiation for sterilization to the International Atomic Energy Agency. He has also served on the editorial board of the international Journal for Radiation Physics and Chemistry since 2010. Dr. Tim Barger is the religion editor of The Blade, the daily newspaper in Toledo, Ohio.

1980

Jim Gray of Washington, D.C., recently moved to a management position in housing policy at the Federal Housing Finance Agency. He also completed the NeighborWorks® Achieving Excellence in Community Development program in collaboration with Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government as a Ford Foundation Fellow. (Editor’s note: This item was reported under the wrong class year in the fall edition of Hendrix Magazine. We apologize for the error.) Jeanne Loveless Seewald, managing partner of the Southwest Florida offices of Hahn Loeser & Parks LLP,

was elected President of the Collier County Bar Association in Naples, Fla. She also recently was named to the Top 50 Women Florida Super Lawyers 2012.

1981

Randy Dixon was chosen to be director of the David and Barbara Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History at the University of Arkansas. Dr. Mike Pinter was named the 2012 Professor of the Year from the state of Tennessee by the Council for the Advancement of Support of Education and the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. Dr. Robert Scheinberg has been named one of the “Best Doctors in Dallas” by D Magazine for seven years in a row. Alan Winkler has been named executive director of Urology San Antonio, a 27-physician medical practice in South Texas. Previously, he was the vice president of clinical operations at St. Vincent Health System,

44 Hendrix Magazine | Spring 2013

1986 a five-hospital system in Little Rock, Ark.

1984

Nancy Womack Mitchell earned a bachelor of science in nursing degree from Arkansas State University in August 2011 and received the Florence Nightingale Award for the Outstanding Accelerated BSN Student. She is the Clinical Nurse Manager of Senior Haven, a geriatric psychiatric unit, at White River Medical Center in Batesville. Tim Parker of Eureka Springs was appointed by Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe as the new District Judge for the Western District of Carroll County.

1985

Chip Jones III has been appointed as managing shareholder of Littler Mendelson’s Dallas office. Dr. Don McKinney has been inducted as a Fellow into the American College of Trial Lawyers, recognizing him among the best of the trial bar from the United States and Canada.

Judge P. Luevonda Ross was appointed to the Drew County District Court of Arkansas.

1989

Del Ray Cross has been editor of SHAMPOO, an online poetry publication, for 13 years. SHAMPOO has made its waves over the years, and was a pioneer online magazine that still publishes unknowns alongside Pulitzer Prize winners. Kelli Hendrix Trickey is office manager of Small World Big Fun, a travel agency specializing in Disney vacations.

1990

Phillip Reid enrolled at Memorial University in Newfoundland, Canada, in the Ph.D. program for Maritime History. He and his wife, Andrea Payne Reid ’89, are spending two semesters in residence in St. John’s, Newfoundland. Rep. Darrin Williams is CEO of Southern Bancorp, Inc. Frank Wilmot joined the Denver Public Library as a Senior Librarian in the Central Library Reference Services department.

Lieutenant Colonel Tim Zimmerman was recently selected by the U.S. Army to be the Assistant Chief of Staff, G-1 (Personnel) for the 1st Theater Sustainment Command, Fort Bragg. His unit is responsible for all sustainment operations in the U.S. Central Command, with forward command posts in Kuwait and Afghanistan.

1991

Alex B. Dawson of Little Rock was named the Vice PresidentInvestments of The Mutual Fund Store. Laura M. Burson has joined Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP as a partner in the firm’s Intellectual Property practice group, based in the firm’s Los Angeles office.

1992

Renata Biro Halasz was an exchange student from 1991-1992. She finished her studies in Maribor, Slovenia, in 1992 and has been a professor of English and German language at a secondary school in Lendava for more than 20 years. Jennifer Platt received her Ph.D. in Health Policy and Management from the University of North Carolina’s Gillings School of Global Public Health. Her dissertation explored ways to institutionalize sanitation in developing countries through involvement of the health ministry.

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1994

Brad Spear of Washington, D.C., has started a new job with HGS Engineering Inc. He will work with the U.S. Department of Justice to help federal agencies improve their performance in energy efficiency, reduce fossil fuel use, increase the use of renewable and distributed electricity generation, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

1996

Stephen Coler was featured at the Bentonville Public Library with a floral exhibition titled “Ikebana – Living Flowers, Living Art.” Amy Dunn Johnson of Little Rock has been honored by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation as a 2012 Community Health Leader. As executive director of the Arkansas Access to Justice Commission, she helps low-income Arkansans overcome legal barriers that perpetuate poverty.

1997

Tracy McKay Dixon became a partner of Kutak Rock LLP in January and practices insurance law in the

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Omaha, Neb., office. In February and August 2013, Penguin will publish the seventh and eighth novels in her New York Times bestselling Chicagoland Vampires novels, which she pens under a pseudonym.

1999

Mary Beth Turner graduated with honors in 2002 from University of Texas School of Law. She then attended medical school at the University of Oklahoma, graduating in 2010. She is now a third-year psychiatry resident at Oregon Health & Science University in Portland, Ore., and plans to open her own practice.

2000

Dawn McCoy of Los Angeles is an actor, singer, writer and the creator/editor of BeautyFrosting.com, a beauty, baking and being (lifestyle) blog. She recently completed her first children’s book, The Cupcake Kid, and has done voiceover work in commercials for Target, Taylor Swift, No Doubt, Pink, UPS, Little Tikes, HGTV and Bing.

2001

Colin Blair is the first author of the paper “Exploring Gold Nanoparticles, the IBI Prize-winning module, guides students’ construction and evidencebased refinement of their personal models of gold nanoparticles,” in Science Magazine (Aug. 31, 2012) involving teaching chemistry to undergraduates.

Marisa Pryor of Washington, D.C., is the Associate Director of Operations for the White House Fellowship Program. Previously, she worked for the Oprah Winfrey Leadership for Girls in South Africa and for U. S. Senator Mark Pryor (D-Ark.). She is a graduate of the University of Arkansas William H. Bowen School of Law and the Clinton School of Public Service, both in Little Rock. Brooke Augusta Owen Ware is Development Manager at the William J. Clinton Foundation in Little Rock.

2002

Tanya Corbin Holmes is Corporate Attorney for Regulatory Affairs with ALSAC, the fundraising organization of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

2003

Chris Daily’s book, Robert Morrison and the Beginning of Protestant Missions in China, has been accepted for publication by Hong Kong University (HKU) Press. It will appear as a book in a HKU Press monograph series published by the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland. It will be published in both Chinese and English and distributed in North America by Columbia University Press. Dr. Lauren Holt completed her dissertation, “Lyric Relations: Poetic Intersubjectivity in the Long Eighteenth

Century,” and earned her Ph.D. in English from Emory University in May. She is a Marion L. Brittain Postdoctoral Fellow at the Georgia Institute of Technology. Pittman Ware is Director of Facilities and Rentals at Wildwood Park for the Arts in Little Rock.

2004

Jed Daily has coauthored a book, The Law of Superheroes, published by Gotham, a division of Penguin. The book is based on a blog, Law and the Multiverse, that he created and now co-authors. Kayce Green Price left the Pulaski County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office to be an attorney at Law Offices of Gary Green.

2005

Neil Groat has accepted the Head Baseball Coaching position at Hendrix College. Shana Woodard began working as Operations Manager for the Pulaski County Clerk’s office in January 2013.

2006

Alisha Burrow completed a three-year intensive program of tourism marketing and management courses titled Travel & Tourism College with the Texas Travel Industry Association and will receive the Certified Tourism Executive (CTE) designation upon

completion of her final project. Dr. Amy Hillard became an Assistant Professor of Psychology at Adrian College in Fall 2012. Brad Howard is a Public Affairs & Media Manager with the Small Business Administration’s Office of Advocacy, which serves as an independent voice for small business within the federal government.

2008

Jessica Crenshaw of Cordova, Tenn., received positive reviews and letters of praise from Maya Angelou and Nikki Giovanni for her recently published poetry books. Samuel Kauffman became a member of the Arkansas Bar in January. He is a policy advocate and staff attorney at the Center for Popular Democracy as an Anderson Fellow through June 2013, when he plans to return to Arkansas. Henry Phillips has accepted a position at Zynga as a Data Analyst.

2010

Dietlinde Heilmayr will spend her 2013 summer doing Bike and Build, a bike ride across the country that raises money and awareness for affordable housing. Timothy Nichols started working as an electro-physics engineer for The Boeing Company in St. Louis, Mo., in October 2012.

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alumnotes

Michael Wilson’s work is hosted at the de Young Museum as part of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco’s Artistin-Residence Program. His work addresses the rhetoric of dreams and revolutionary longing that is ubiquitous in contemporary culture.

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2011

Taylor Kidd has accepted a position as Assistant Director of University Relations – Gift Programs at Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas. He is completing a master’s degree in higher education at the University of Arkansas.

2012

Braeden Hall of Conway traveled to the Czech Republic to work with the organization World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms. While there, he also volunteered as a petty officer on the Lady Washington, a replica of a cargo ship used in the mid-1700s.

Marriages

Jessica McNeil ’05 to Brandon Robinson, Sept. 22, 2012.

Susan Williams ’70 to David Seal, Sept. 8, 2012.

Robert Hill ’08 to Emily Kueny ’10, October 2012.

Curt Miller ’78 to Colin Dockrill, Sept. 22, 2012.

Lindsay Merritt ’10 to Josh Naylor, Aug. 18, 2012.

Debby Eubanks ’79 to Dr. Al Gordon ’80, Dec. 15, 2012, Greene Chapel.

Ashley Elaine Williams ’10 to Kristen D.L. Staples ’11, Sept. 15, 2012.

David Zaleski ’81 to Jill Ann Helgeson, Nov. 24, 2012.

Mac Barnes ’11 to Amelia Wildenborg ’11, Nov. 3, 2012, Greene Chapel.

Eric Dyer ’95 to Rev. Michael Tino, Dec. 2, 2012.

Meredith Miles ’12 to Gage Jennings, Jan. 5, 2013, Greene Chapel.

Candice Abele ’02 to George Cole, Sept. 29, 2012. Matt Price ’03 to Kayce Green ’04, Oct. 20, 2012.

New Children

Jera Houghtaling ’04 to Jamison Stiles, Dec. 15, 2012.

Harper Grace, first daughter, second child, to Alex B. Dawson ’91 and Melanie, Dec. 19, 2012.

James Fulwider ’05 to Annalissa Keen ’07, Aug. 25, 2012, and have changed their last name to Ochiltre.

Matthew James Beard, first son, fourth child, to Karyn James Beard ’94 and Eli, Aug. 28, 2012. Liza Lane, first daughter, second child, to Rob Baker ’97 and Stephannie, Nov. 27, 2012.

Back Row (L to R): Alena Davis Cousins ’07, Jennifer Kribs Mason ’05, Darcy Baskin Pumphrey ’05, Rose Nuffer ’04, Robin Lowrimore Jessup ’06

Abraham “Abe” Jasper, first son, first child, to Sarah King ’97 and Kelly Roark King ’99, Sept. 6, 2011.

Front Row (L to R): Lauren Weygandt Licatino ’06, Andrea Glaser Gunderman ’05, Jessie Miller Boeckmann ’05, Becca Swearingen ’03

Kaley McKenize, first daughter, first child, to Dr. Shelly Bryant Thannum ’97 and Michael, March 17, 2012.

Robert Hill ’08 to Emily Kueny ’10, October 2012

Raimi Marilise, first daughter, second child, to Brandon Welch ’98 and Dr. Eva Juergenson Welch ’99, Nov. 3, 2012. Owen Terry, second son, second child, to Neil Osam ’99 and Megan, Sept. 2, 2012. Hannah Abielle, second daughter, second child, to Leah Annulis Youngblood ’99 and Stephen, Aug. 22, 2012. Jack William, first son, first child, to Chris Hardesty Applegate ’00 and Dustin, Oct. 30, 2012. Natalie Grace, first daughter, second child, to Kimberly Cousins Head ’00 and Robert, Nov. 4, 2012.

Jessica McNeil ’05 to Brandon Robinson, Sept. 22, 2012

46 Hendrix Magazine | Spring 2013

Lindsay Merritt ’10 to Josh Naylor, Aug. 18, 2012

Knyls Rhys, born Jan. 5, 2012, and Knox Ryker, born May 21, 2011, both sons, adopted by KaTina Hodge ’00.

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alumnotes Gabrielle Prather, daughter of Armando Prather ’11 and Cecilia Ayala ’12

Andrew Baker, son of Fred Baker ’00 and Christy Hickman Baker ’00

Emily Katherine Vassallo, daughter of Katherine McAdoo Vassallo ’03

Adeline and Myka Canavans, daughters of Chris Canavan ’99 Thomas Ross Anderson, son of Jenny Noble Anderson ’02 Emmaline Anne, second daughter, third child, to R. Zachary Manis ’00 and Lisa Meyer Manis ’00, May 25, 2011. Charles Rew, first son, first child, to David Scott Cunningham ’01 and Elizabeth Quinn, Oct. 12, 2012. Elizabeth Lee, first daughter, second child, to Cody Hopkins ’01 and Andrea, Dec. 6, 2012. Layson Lavina, son of J.L. Lavina ’01 and Julieza.

The Christie family gathered in St. Paul, Minn., over Christmas to welcome Abraham, son of Emily Newman Christie ’06 and Thomas Christie ’06. Standing behind them are (from left) John Christie ’10, Kestin Schulz ’10, Scott Christie ’79, Martha Fish Christie ’77 and Matthew Christie ’15. Miles Parker, first son, first child, to Grand Morshedi ’04 and Anna Parker Morshedi ’05, Sept. 27, 2012.

Thomas Ross, first son, first child, to Jenny Noble Anderson ’02 and Bjorn, July 26, 2012.

Adelaide Ruth, first daughter, first child, to Janice Bowden Hardaway ’05 and David, Dec. 14, 2012.

Ellie Grace, first daughter, first child, to Ryan Mason ’02 and Jennifer Kribs Mason ’05, Nov. 19, 2012.

Ian Benjamin, first son, second child, to Faith Bullinger Kasukonis ’05, Sept. 2, 2012.

Amelia Rose, first daughter, first child, to Paul Alexander ’03 and Alice Price Alexander ’03, Jan. 25, 2012.

Julia Fogle, daughter of Melissa Lavina Fogle ’06 and Jeremy.

Elyjah Jaron, first son, first child, to Pierre Pinkerton ’03 and MyChelle, April 18, 2012.

Tenley Sue, first daughter, first child, to Emily Morgan McMillan ’06 and Luke, June 9, 2012.

Emily Katherine, first daughter, first child, to Katherine McAdoo Vassallo ’03 and Frank, Jan. 7, 2012.

Gabrielle Prather, first daughter, first child, to Cecilia Ayala ’12 and Armando Prather ’11, July 16, 2012.

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Reed David Routon, son of Dr. Stephen Routon ’04 and Dr. Julie Alford Routon ’04; James Owen Alford and Eleanor Anne Alford, son and daughter of Brian Alford ’02 and Margo Morton Alford ’05

Emma Jayne Alexander, daughter of Noel Alexander ’03 and Jessica Duke Alexander ’03; Amelia Rose Alexander, daughter of Paul Alexander ’03 and Alice Price Alexander ’03

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alumnotes

Hendrix Loses Friend, Longtime Chaplain Rev. Jon Guthrie (1934 – 2012) Longtime Hendrix chaplain Rev. Jon Dickey Guthrie ’56 passed away Saturday, Nov. 17, 2012 in Conway. Born in Prescott, Ark., Rev. Guthrie graduated from Delight High School in 1952 and from Hendrix in 1956. He completed Drew University School of Theology in Madison, N.J., in 1959 and theological studies at Heidelberg University of Germany in 1958. He was an ordained elder of the United Methodist Church and served as a Methodist Missionary in Zaire, Congo, in 1959 as the Belgian Congo declared its independence from Belgium. Guthrie returned home in 1962 for further studies and returned to Zaire in 1964, leading a team of three men of A-3 missionary status in the war-torn Congo. He returned to the states and in 1968 was appointed as the associate pastor of First United Methodist Church of Conway, Ark. In 1969, he began serving as chaplain of Hendrix College and retired from that position in 1996. Beginning in 2002, he served Hendrix as special advisor. “Like so many students at Hendrix, I got to

have Jon Guthrie as my chaplain. This gentle person was always there if I ever needed to talk about anything. When I was discerning my call into ministry, I remember talking with Jon about this and the wisdom he shared,” said Hendrix College Chaplain Rev. J. Wayne Clark ’84. “In that process, I had the fantasy of getting to return to Hendrix one day and be the chaplain after Jon retired. I never really thought that fantasy would become a reality, but when it did, I was very humbled. When I did return, Jon was one of my greatest supporters. It was hard to follow this legend, and I knew I could never take his place but rather be faithful to the ministry. I feel very blessed to have had Jon as my chaplain and as my mentor.” Rev. Guthrie’s dad played minor league baseball which gave Jon a love of the sport. He was also an ardent supporter of Riddle’s Elephant & Wildlife Sanctuary of Greenbrier, Ark. Memorials may be given to Hendrix College designated to the Imagine No Malaria campaign to eradicate malaria in sub-Saharan Africa and to Riddle’s Elephant and Wildlife Sanctuary.

In Memoriam Wanda Garrison Hale ’33 Flora Jean Brain Roth ’35 Mirian Mitchell Hulen Scott ’35 Thurman Shuller ’36 Joe Bill Hackler ’39 Martha Dolores “Dodi” Proctor Harrelson ’41 Llewellyn Lee Brown Jr. ’42 David Cleveland Rains ’42 H.W. “Wib” Kamp Jr. ’43 Guy Woodson Moseley ’43 Ardath Lee Buzbee Saunders ’43 DeVaney Pope Roberts ’44 Katherine Greene Whatley ’44 Harry Pat Savery ’46 Margaret Juanita Yocum Brown ’46 Anita Jean Opitz Etheridge ’47 Walter Wilson Hoy ’47 Peggy Brown Jett ’47 Julia Martha Hays Lowman ’47 Margaret “Pat” Ruth Few Brunner ’48 Hugh E. Longino Jr. ’48 Jo Marie Lehigh Van Dyck ’48 James C. Baker ’49 Matilda McFaddin Wynne ’49 W. Kenneth Pierce ’50

48 Hendrix Magazine | Spring 2013

Bennie Gene Hooks ’51 Eleanor Jeannine Chalfant Soule ’51 Lewis Christine Crawford Wilson ’51 H.G. “Jack” Frost Jr. ’52, Trustee (1987‑1998) Florence Mae Dillahunty Henry ’52 Sherman B. Peterson ’52 Fred Russell Disheroon ’53 Wayne Linwood Hill ’53 Justice Franklin Warden ’53 Wayne B. Stone Jr. ’54 David Hartman Dickens ’55 Jon Dickey Guthrie ’56, Chaplain and Presidential Advisor (1969‑1996 & 2002‑2012) Gilbert Warren Tarver ’56 Linda Joy Johnson Smith ’57 Marjorie Faye Adams Sharp ’58 Marcia Adkins Griffin ’61 Thomas Reaves Adams Jr. ’62 Beverly Jean Gay Alpay ’63 Sue Massey Matthews ’65 Thomas Jefferson Raney III ’68 Betty Ruth Schenck ’69 Carol Marie Stallings ’70

Ray Christopher Thomas ’71 Forrest Curtis Packard ’72 Mark Reeves Cate ’73 Gary D. Cohen ’73 Harland Michael Hall ’74 Charles Davis Johnson ’75 Thomas Harris Linn III ’77 Cherri Gale Sorrels Mathena ’81 Anthony Armand Bliss ’89 Daniel Scott MacGregor Doyle ’05 Elicia Rose Betlatch ’10 Tyler James Sullivan ’15 Faculty & Staff Joel Dougan Chandler Jr., Development (1983‑1986) Thelma B. Graddy, Head resident, Martin Hall (early 1970s) Peter Dierks Joers, Trustee (1972‑1977) Doyle W. Rogers Sr., Trustee (1984‑1996)

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Albert Raymond, Professor of Biology, Emeritus, and Associate Dean of the College (1952-1996) When ’57 Chevy’s were all the rage, you couldn’t own a car at Hendrix — but you (and everyone else) could count on seeing your grades posted outside Dean Raymond’s door. And he was always there to support you. If you cherish your memories of Hendrix, you can provide the same kind of memories for generations to come. A designated or planned gift provides life-changing experiences for students and it creates a legacy that will endure. Although the names and faces change over time, the memories remain. Share the gift of Hendrix memories. Support the Altus Bell Society.

please join us

For more information, contact Lori F. Jones ’81, CFP® Director of Planned Giving (501) 450-1476 or email JonesL@hendrix.edu www.hendrixaltusbell.org

Non-Profit Organization U.S. Postage PAID Little Rock, AR Permit #906

Photo from the 1910 Troubadour

1600 Washington Avenue Conway, Arkansas 72032

Hendrix first fielded a football team in 1907, so by 1909-10 these players were veterans. A copy of this photo with a list of names written on the back tells us this was a distinguished group that included (fourth from the left in the back row) the College’s first Rhodes Scholar – Claud D. Nelson, who won the prestigious scholarship in 1910 – and Coach T.S. Staples, who is the last person on the right in the middle row. Nelson was the first of six Hendrix students to be named Rhodes Scholars. Staples joined the Hendrix history faculty in 1908 and later earned a Ph.D. from Columbia University. Dr. Staples served as Dean of the College from 1928 to his retirement in 1949. Staples Auditorium was named in his honor in 1958, about a year after his death.