MILLSAPS MAGAZINE
WINTER 2017
Community members gathered for an interfaith vigil in the Bowl on Feb. 2, 2017.
“Millsaps College is an impressive collection of individuals from Mississippi and around the world. Our strength as a community comes, in large part, from our diversity—our different socio-economic backgrounds, faiths, races, cultures, political viewpoints, sexual orientations, and yes, nationalities. This diversity makes us a more interesting, tolerant, and dynamic place, and equips us all—students, faculty, and staff alike—with the sort of understanding needed to make a positive difference in the world.”
These are the opening words from a recent statement I made to the campus community and the public at large. The statement was written as a reminder to us all of the many factors that make the Millsaps College community stronger and more readily equipped to thoughtfully, clearly, and safely discuss the issues of the day, including issues that are polarizing our nation. In this edition of Millsaps Magazine, you will find more stories about our students and faculty who bring their diverse backgrounds, talents, and perspectives to our campus and make us all the better for it. Our feature story on “Politics in America and Colleges” provides an in-depth and thoughtful look from Millsaps at last year’s campaign and election cycle, one of the most unpredictable years in our nation’s political history. The personalities and issues of the campaign challenged the way we approach political conversations, and I am proud of the manner in which the Millsaps community facilitated inclusive conversations and demonstrated the value of open and honest discussion. You will also enjoy reading about the Millsaps alumni who
success across a wide variety of industries and fields. This issue highlights important news and events from the last few months at Millsaps, including: • The announcement of the Rev. Dr. Joey Shelton, B.B.A. 1982, as our new chaplain and director of church relations; • The scientific research our students conduct on campus and across the street, in partnership with the University of Mississippi Medical Center; • The continued growth and success of the Compass Curriculum, with a particular story of its recent focus on power in the plantation system and the legacy of slavery; • Our partnership with the William Carey University College of Osteopathic Medicine; and • Details of our largest freshman class since 2009. These are interesting times indeed, rich with opportunity for Millsaps and our nation. I hope you will read these stories and consider how Millsaps has impacted your own perspectives on our world today and on our future.
have built successful careers in the ever-evolving world of political consultancy. Their stories remind us of the value of a Millsaps education and how a liberal arts education based in critical thinking and strong communications skills can help graduates achieve
Robert W. Pearigen, Ph.D. President
Politics in America and Colleges
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On Campus Campus Events Accolades Fulbright Fellow Methodist Book Scientific Research Compass Curriculum Director Prison Outreach
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Major Sports Calling the Shots
From Player to Coach Paralympic Athlete
Millsaps Magazine Winter 2017
EXECUTIVE STAFF Dr. Robert W. Pearigen, President
EXECUTIVE EDITOR John Sewell*
Dr. S. Keith Dunn, Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of the College
DESIGN Kelley Matthews
Dr. Robert Alexander, Vice President of Enrollment and Communications
PUBLICATIONS MANAGER Nell Luter Floyd CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Zaria Bonds, Ruth Cummins, Nell Luter Floyd, Daniel Paulling, Hannah Saulters*, John Webb, and Sophie Wolf WEB Lucy Molinaro* and Emma Stockton CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Greg Campbell, Joe Kusomoto, A.J. Reynolds, and Sophie McNeil Wolf
Hope M. Carter, Vice President of Institutional Advancement Terri Hudson, Vice President for Institutional Planning and Assessment Dan Hungerford, Vice President of Finance Dr. R. Brit Katz, Vice President for Student Life and Dean of Students Kenneth Townsend*, Special Assistant to the President
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Alumni Mongol Rally Chad Songy Gusanita Roberson Class Notes In Memoriam
BOARD OF TRUSTEES J. Thomas Fowlkes*, Chair; The Rev. Jerry Bostick Beam*; The Rev. Zachary C. Beasley; Ryan Beckett*; Paul T. Benton*; Carol A. Biedenharn*; The Rev. Warren Black*; Katherine B. Brady; William Bynum; James A. Coggin; The Rev. Claire Dobbs; John D. Durrett; Mark R. Freeman*; The Rev. Elisabeth Anne Garvin*; William F. Goodman III*; Judge James E. Graves Jr.*; Judy Guice*; Maurice H. Hall Jr.*; Monica Sethi Harrigill*; William R. James; Peder R. Johnson*; The Rev. W. Geoffrey Joyner*; Charles R. Lathem*; John L. Lindsey; Paul F. McNeill*; Michael T. McRee; Jean N. Medley*; Richard H. Mills*; Monte Rector*; Dr. Robert C. Robbins*; Donna Ruth Else Roberts; E. B. Robinson Jr.; The Rev. Dr. J. Joseph Shelton IV*; Roger Smith*; Mike Sturdivant*; Bishop James E. Swanson Sr.; Ward Van Skiver*; J. Mack Varner*
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HONORARY TRUSTEES Robert H. Dunlap*; Robert W. Pittman* LIFE TRUSTEES Gale L. Galloway; William T. Jeanes*; Robert N. Leggett Jr.*; J. Con Maloney Jr.*; Rowan H. Taylor; John C. Vaughey; Leila Clark Wynn *Denotes Millsaps Alumnus/Alumnae Millsaps Magazine is published by Millsaps College, 1701 North State Street, Jackson, MS 39210, for distribution to alumni, parents of students, and friends of the College. For the online magazine, visit www.millsaps.edu/magazine.
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CAMPUS EVENTS
SCHOLARS, AUTHORS, AND MUSICIANS WERE AMONG VISITORS IN RECENT MONTHS.
Marshall Ramsey
Frank X Walker
Richard Grant
Harrison Scott Key
Alicia Netterville and Elissa Johnson
Margaret McMullan
Dr. Alex Filippenko
Former Governor Ray Mabus
MILLSAPS ARTS & LECTURE SERIES Marshall Ramsey, a two-time Pulitzer finalist who is known for his nationally syndicated editorial cartoons, spoke last October as part of the Arts & Lecture Series. He is an author and the host of a weekly statewide radio program and a weekly television show, both on Mississippi Public Broadcasting. Millsaps history professor Dr. Stephanie Rolph, noted Kentucky poet Frank X Walker, and Dr. Marty Wiseman, professor of political science at Mississippi State University and former director of The Stennis Institute, spoke in January about “The State of Our State: Mississippi at 200 Years.” The program honored former Mississippi Gov. William F. Winter. Richard Grant, author of Dispatches from Pluto: Lost and Found in the Mississippi Delta, and Harrison Scott Key, author of The World’s Largest Man, presented a program last November about their work.
CONSTITUTION DAY FORUM Alicia Netterville and Elissa Johnson, former law clerks for U.S. Federal Court Judge Carlton Reeves, offered reflections on what it was like to serve on the front lines of groundbreaking constitutional cases such as those decided by Reeves. Reeves has heard high-profile constitutional cases on topics ranging from Mississippi’s same-sex marriage ban and gay adoption ban to Mississippi’s controversial “Protecting Freedom of Conscience from Government Discrimination Act,” also known as HB 1523.
VISITING WRITERS SERIES Margaret McMullan, author of the essay, “Kaddish for Engel,” and Katy Simpson Smith, author of the novel Free Men, read from their work in November as part of the Millsaps Visiting Writers Series. The Millsaps English Department and the Eudora Welty Foundation sponsored the program.
MILLSAPS FORUMS Dr. Alex Filippenko, one of the world’s most highly cited astronomers, spoke in January during a Millsaps Forum about the expanding universe. The recipient of numerous prizes for his scientific research, he was the only person to have been a member of both teams that revealed the accelerating expansion of the universe. Ebony Lumumba, chair and assistant professor of English at Tougaloo College; C. Liegh McInnis, poet, fiction writer, and instructor of English at Jackson State University; and author Katy Simpson Smith, shared some of their favorite passages from Claudia Rankine’s book, Citizen, in February. Citizen was the 2016 summer reading assignment for first-year Millsaps students.
ELISE AND WILLIAM WINTER SPEAKER SERIES Ray Mabus, governor of Mississippi from 1988-1992, U.S. Ambassador to Saudia Arabia from 1994-96, and secretary of the Navy from 2009-2017, spoke in February as part of the Elise and William Winter Speaker Series. Mabus earned attention for his efforts to rebuild the U.S. fleet and revolutionize energy procurement and consumption, promote innovation in Navy personnel and business practices, and strengthen global partnerships. 2 www.millsaps.edu
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ACCOLADES
Millsaps faculty spend time in the classroom, but that's not all they do. They find time for research and creative endeavors, and they participate in professional activities that expand their knowledge and enhance their teaching. Our staff members stay busy, too. Here are some of their recent professional activities.
Faculty DAVID C. DAVIS, associate professor of history, presented the invited paper, “Timbuktu in Mississippi: Representation and Reception of the Islamic Arts in the Deep South,” at the International Conference on the Islamic Arts, Kuwait University and the National Council for Culture, Arts and Letters in April 2016 in Kuwait City, Kuwait.
BLAKELY FOX FENDER, B.A. 1992, professor of economics; HARVEY FISER , associate professor of business law; and CARL G. BROOKING , professor emeritus of economics and quantitative management, published “Update to Assessing Economic Damages in Personal Injury and Wrongful Death Litigation: The State of Mississippi” in the 2016
Journal of Forensic Economics.
SABRINA N. GRONDHUIS, assistant professor of psychology and neuroscience, published “Risk Factors for Overweight in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder” in Journal of Developmental and Physi-
cal Disabilities (November 2016).
SABRICE GUERRIER, assistant professor of biology, published “An evolutionary balance: conservation vs. innovation in ciliate membrane trafficking” in the journal, Traffic, in October 2016. Co-authors include H. Plattner of the University of Konstaz, Konstaz, Germany; E. Richardson of the University of Alberta, Canada; J. Dacks of the University of Alberta, Canada, and A. Turkewitz of the University of Chicago.
PHIL HARDWICK, M.B.A. 1984, director of business analysts, ELSEWorks, Else School of Management, is the 2016-2017 president of the Mississippi Association of Partners in Education.
PATRICK HOPKINS, professor of philosophy, and HARVEY FISER, associate professor of business law, published the article “Getting Inside the Employee’s Head: Neuroscience, Negligent Employment Liability, and the Push and Pull for New Technology” in the Boston University Journal of Science
and Technology Law, winter 2016 edition.
MARK J. LYNCH, associate professor of mathematics, had his paper “A function with a continuous nonzero derivative whose inverse is nowhere continuous” accepted for publication in the December 2016 Mathematics Magazine. The acceptance
marks his 25th publication in a peer-reviewed
WILLIAM K. STOREY, professor of history, has been
mathematics journal.
named the inaugural Arthur Vining Davis Founda-
SHELLI M. POE, assistant professor of religious studies, obtained a $25,000 grant from the Network for Vocation in Undergraduate Education, which is supported by the Council for Independent Colleges and the Lilly Endowment, to lead Millsaps’ Initiative for Vocational Inquiry in renewing its vocational programs during the 2016-17 academic year.
SHADOW ROBINSON is a co-author of “Magnetic moment and lifetime measurements of Coulombexcited states in 106Cd” in Physical Review C. It marked the 50th referred journal article of which he has been a co-author.
WILL SELMAN, B.S. 2003, assistant professor of biology, and co-author Robert L. Jones (Mississippi Museum of Natural Science) published a long-term study documenting the conservation status of two turtle species found only in the Pearl River of Mississippi and Louisiana. The article, “Population Structure, Status, and Conservation of Two
Graptemys Species from the Pearl River, Mississippi,” appeared in the Journal of Herpetology December 2016 issue.
tions International Perspectives Faculty Fellow for the 2017-18 academic year. He will teach in the fall of 2017 a seminar focused on the international impact of global climate change. He and the students involved in this seminar (and participating in a living/learning community) will then plan and support a college-wide conference on the topic in the spring of 2018.
HOLLY SYPNIEWSKI, associate professor of classics and the E.B. Stewart Family Professor in Language and Literature, has been named the Frueauff Faculty Pedagogy Fellow for the 2017-2018 academic year. She will support the continuing implementation of the Compass Curriculum, particularly the teaching and assessment of integrative learning. She plans to explore how several colleges use integrative learning to structure major campus programs such as living-learning communities, general education courses clustered by theme, and to develop ways in which integrative learning can be enhanced at Millsaps.
Staff ELIZABETH GIDDENS, registrar, was elected president
NATHAN R. SHRADER, assistant professor of political
of the Mississippi Association of College Regis-
science and director of American Studies, ap-
trars and Admissions Officers for the 2017-2018
peared in more than a dozen interviews with na-
academic year. She serves as president-elect during
tional, state, and local news media during the 2016
the 2016-2017 academic year.
presidential election. He also served as the keynote speaker at the Mississippi League of Women Voters post-election meeting and authored a piece on the future of the Democratic Party for the Sun
Herald newspaper in Biloxi.
BRIT KATZ, vice president of student life and dean of students, is the chair of the NCAA Division III Management Council. He is the first college or university vice president to hold the office.
STEVE SMITH, professor of philosophy and religious
WILL TAKEWELL, director of campus life, was part
studies, has published the book, Full History: On
of a research team that published “Bumpin’ Up
the Meaningfulness of Shared Action (Bloomsbury
Against People and Their Beliefs: Narratives of
Academic, 2017). In November, he presented a pa-
Student Affairs Administrators Creating Change
per on “Language as the Unavoidable Guidance” at
for LGBTQ Students in the South” in the Journal
a philosophy conference at the University of South
of Diversity in Higher Education (Sept. 2016).
Florida on the topic “Is There Any Such Thing as a
Takewell has also been selected to serve as a lead
Language?”
facilitator for the Undergraduate Interfraternity
CAITLIN SOCKBESON, assistant professor of man-
Institute, as well as a lead facilitator for the Institute for Leadership Education and Development.
agement, presented “Does it Hurt to Ask?: How
In both roles, Takewell will work to develop and
Gender and Feedback-Seeking Affect Feedback
mentor students and professionals from across the
Content” at the Southern Management Associa-
country as they work in immersive living-learning
tion Conference in October.
communities and work through leadership curriculum. Millsaps Magazine Winter 2017
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Growing with Major pride We’re happy to say that the 2016 freshman class at Millsaps College is the largest since 2009! The number of freshmen enrolled in fall 2016 was 259, up 16 percent from last year’s number of 223 freshmen. The class is academically impressive, with a record high average ACT score of 27. Representing 6 percent of incoming freshmen, this year’s cohort of international students is the largest in the history of the College, said Dr. Robert Alexander, vice president for enrollment and communications. The College welcomed first-year international students from Bolivia, China, Ethiopia, The Gambia, Germany, India, Iran, Japan, Kenya, Mongolia, Singapore, and the U.K. More than one-third of the class are from minority backgrounds. More than 10 percent of the class are legacy students, a strong demonstration of alumni affinity for their alma mater. Alexander said faculty, staff, students, and alumni all played a role in such positive news. “I extend my thanks to all those on campus and off, who helped recruit this fantastic group of new students to Millsaps,” he said. Along with the new students, three alumni joined the faculty. They are Sue Carrie Drummond, B.A. 2012, visiting assistant professor of art; Dr. Leslie Horton, B.A. 1974, visiting assistant professor of math; and Dr. William W. Selman, B.S. 2003, assistant professor of biology.
Partnership for medical students An agreement between Millsaps College and the William Carey University College of Osteopathic Medicine in Hattiesburg guarantees admission to the College of Osteopathic Medicine for qualified Millsaps graduates. The agreement was signed Nov. 2, 2016 by Dr. Keith Dunn, senior vice president for academic affairs and dean of Millsaps College, and Dr. Jim Weir, associate dean, students affairs and professor of biomedical sciences (pathology) at William Carey University. “This is an exciting and innovative agreement between our two institutions, and offers students an opportunity to begin their college experience with the promise of medical school secure in their future,” said Dunn. Weir echoed Dunn’s sentiments. “We are delighted to enter into this agreement with Millsaps College,” said Weir. “We have had many excellent students enter our program from Millsaps College over the years. Invariably, we have found them well prepared for medical school and pleasant to have in our student body.” To be initially considered for the program, students must be admitted to Millsaps College; have a minimum combined SAT score of 1200 in the critical reading and math sections (not including the writing section), or an ACT score of 26; and participate in an interview conducted jointly by representatives of Millsaps and William Carey. Entrance into the program will be on a competitive basis, and limited to 10 students per year. During their undergraduate studies at Millsaps, students must meet specific conditions to secure their guaranteed acceptance into the College of Osteopathic Medicine.
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James Observatory gets a major facelift The James Observatory, a beloved landmark on campus, looks brand new thanks to a restoration project funded by two grants from the Mississippi Department of Archives and History and gifts from individual donors. Dr. Chris Glick, a former Millsaps trustee, provided a lead gift in memory of her parents, Dr. and Mrs. Lester Glick, whose passion for learning provided great inspiration to her. The restoration of the observatory was the first since its 1901 construction. Paint was stripped, original color restored, the dome made functional, damaged wood replaced, and the Transit Room shutters reconstructed. Noted preservation architect Robert Parker Adams, a Millsaps alumnus, directed the restoration, aided by former Millsaps astronomy professor Ben Nichols, who restored the telescope. The observatory is the oldest surviving masonry structure on campus. The rectangular structure on the east side of the main building, the Transit Room, contained instruments that, when viewed through a slit in its roof and walls, permitted observers to track stars as they appeared to pass (transit) directly overhead. Published tables allowed these astronomers to calculate the correct time. The College derived significant income from selling this information to the railroads, which used it for accurate scheduling. Accurate time played a major role in minimizing train wrecks. As timepieces improved, this outside income stream diminished and finally disappeared. Dan James (1872-1903), a prominent Yazoo City Methodist and wealthy cotton merchant and grower, donated the observatory to honor his recently deceased father and brother. His father, Peter James (1836-1900), was a Millsaps College trustee. Dan James’s $40,000 gift included a six-inch Warner & Swayze refracting telescope equipped with a small “finder” telescope and a clock that turned the instruments as the Earth rotated. In a time when astronomy was a popular subject, the James Observatory set Millsaps apart from many area institutions. The observatory’s design was based on one in Ohio built by Warner & Swasey.
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Meet Natasha McGuire, a senior from the Mississippi town of Carriere, who finds it challenging not to be part of everything on campus. She is certainly involved in plenty, having served as president of the Student Body Association, captain of the Millsaps Majorettes Dance Team, a member of the Millsaps Competition Dance Team, an officer of Kappa Delta sorority, a member of the Senior Year Experience Committee, a Foundations leader, and a math department tutor. She is majoring in applied mathematics with a minor in classical studies.
the table and make a difference. I really love staying busy! When it came to SBA president though, one of my fellow students, Anna Sit, approached me and told me all the reasons why she thought I would make a great leader on campus, and that was really encouraging.
Q: WHAT MADE YOU CHOOSE TO ATTEND MILLSAPS?
Q: WHAT DO YOU LIKE ABOUT MILLSAPS?
A: I came on a football visit with my best friend from high school. I instantly fell in love. The campus was beautiful, every time I walked past a student they said ”hi,” and admissions wouldn’t leave me alone about attending. After I visited, I couldn’t see myself anywhere else.
Q: WHAT HAS BEEN THE MOST CHALLENGING THING ABOUT BEING A STUDENT AT MILLSAPS? A: Not being involved in everything! It is tempting to volunteer for a committee, then the next day sign up for a club, and then audition for this play because it seems totally possible. But after three weeks it really piles up with academics, and it is tough to juggle it all. Prioritizing responsibilities challenges your academic experience here in a good way.
Q: WHAT DRIVES YOU TO BE SO INVOLVED ON CAMPUS?
A: Sometimes I just have good ideas that I know I could bring to 6
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Q: WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE ACTIVITY OUT OF ALL THAT YOU’RE INVOLVED IN?
A: Definitely being a Foundations Leader. You get to know all of the freshmen in advance, and I get to completely nerd out about Millsaps. I love talking about all the amazing experiences and memories that I have had here and to watch students experience the same things.
A: The people. Everyone is so friendly and we all have the same mindset: School, fun, food, sleep. Plus a lot of the people are just as obsessed with Harry Potter as I am, so that’s awesome.
Q: WHO IS ONE OF YOUR FAVORITE PROFESSORS AT MILLSAPS?
A: Dr. Holly Sypniewski, professor of classics. I have had her every year since I was a freshman. All of her classes are interactive, hilarious, and she holds all of her students to a high standard. She is a professor who tells you to come meet with her just to catch up on what has been going on in your life and to see if she can help you out with anything.
Q: WHAT PLANS DO YOU HAVE AFTER GRADUATION?
A: I would really love to get a mathematician job at Stennis Space Center back at home. I wouldn’t mind starting out at a basic job then moving up. I want to start working.
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Meet Liz Egan, director of the Writing Center at Millsaps College, a student-driven enterprise that facilitates conversations about writing and the writing process with their peers. As director, Egan supports student writing on campus, but stays behind the scenes as much as she can. For example, she teaches the pedagogy courses writing consultants take to learn how to support the writing work of their peers, but it’s the students who are the stars of their writing and writing processes. She has a B.A. in English from the University of Chicago and an M.F.A. from George Mason University. Q: WHAT DREW YOU TO STUDY ENGLISH? A: The beauty of language, the complexity of humanity, the power of rhetoric—I majored in English because I loved everything about it. I still do; teaching creative writing for the English Department is one of my favorite things about working at Millsaps. Reading books, writing about them, and writing my own books and stories are all things I have a passion for, but getting to blend my own excitement about these things with the excitement my students have for them as well—that’s the best of all worlds.
Q: WHAT ROLE DO YOU PLAY WITH THE MCMULLAN YOUNG WRITERS WORKSHOP? A: The McMullan Young Writers Workshop is a week-long residential creative writing workshop for high school students from all across the state and region who write and grow together under the tutelage of an impressive roster of established writers, such as poet laureate Natasha
Trethewey, who served as last year’s keynote speaker. I greatly admire the vision of the program’s founder and sponsor, writer Margaret McMullan, for imagining that something like the workshop could be possible.
Q: WHAT CREATIVE PROJECTS ARE YOU WORKING ON NOW? A: I’m looking forward to an informal writing residency in the southern Outer Banks in North Carolina this summer, where I plan to draft a novel set in one of the Down East communities there. A few years ago, I stumbled across some documents at the Core Sound Waterfowl Museum in Harker’s Island about the whaling communities that existed in that area in the 1700s-1800s. I was surprised to learn that whaling culture used to extend that far south, and the idea of setting a novel in that world has held my interest ever since.
Q: WHAT DO YOU LIKE ABOUT WORKING AT MILLSAPS COLLEGE? A: I love the opportunities I have here to grow as a writer and be a writing mentor to others at the same time. I’m an editor for a small feminist chapbook press called Gazing Grain Press. We hand-publish most of our titles, and as our press continues to grow, my co-editors and I found we needed some help keeping our authors’ works in publication. So, I created an internship at Millsaps that has been an incredibly rewarding way to provide real-world publishing experience to talented students while supporting the growth of our press.
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Alumnus earns Fulbright Fellowship to study in Mexico Daniel Kees, B.A. 2016, is spending the year in Mexico thanks to a Fulbright Fellowship, awarded by the U.S. Department of State. The Fulbright Program, which is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government, aims to increase mutual understanding and strong ties between the people of the United States and the people of other countries. He is a teacher at Plantel Aeronáutico, which is part of the country’s public vocational training high school system known as CONALEP. Plantel Aeronáutico focuses on STEM subjects as well as aeronautics. “I live in Querétaro, where the Aerobatics University also happens to be located,” he said. Kees is among an estimated 1,600 students to receive Fulbright Fellowships this year. The awards offer recent graduates, postgraduate candidates, and developing professionals and artists opportunities to study and conduct research abroad. Kenneth Townsend, B.A. 2004, chair of the Millsaps Fellowships Committee, celebrated Kees’s selection, stating, “This is a great day for Daniel and for Millsaps. I have had the good fortune of teaching Daniel and working with him through the fellowships process. It is hard to imagine anyone more deserving of this prestigious recognition than Daniel.” Kees, who is from Vicksburg, graduated Phi Beta Kappa and received a bachelor’s degree in economics and political science. He was a member of Omicron Delta Kappa, a leader for the Foundations program that assists new students in becoming part of the campus
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community, and a presidential ambassador for the Admissions Office. He served as president of the freshman honorary Phi Eta Sigma, as student body treasurer, and participated in the Wellspring Living and Learning Community. Kees completed an internship with the Southern Poverty Law Center. Dr. David W. Wood, associate professor and chair of modern languages at Millsaps, said Kees earned a minor in Spanish and was always an eager learner. “He pushed himself to use the language at every opportunity during class,” he said. “He also participated in the Yucatan summer language and culture program led by the Department of Modern Languages in 2015. He applied himself and his effort paid off. “Daniel loves to talk so it wasn’t hard for him to speak up. But, he also takes risks and isn’t worried about making mistakes. He knows that’s how you learn a foreign language. You take risks and learn. He’s now able to polish his skills for an entire year in Mexico. I can’t wait to hear how he speaks Spanish when he gets back.” Millsaps President Robert W. Pearigen commented upon Kees’s Fulbright selection: “Daniel represents the best of a Millsaps education. He thrived in the classroom and was deeply connected to the broader community through volunteer and internship experiences. It was a pleasure having Daniel in the constitutional law course that I teach each year, and I have no doubt Daniel will excel during his time in Mexico and beyond.” Kees follows in the footsteps of six Millsaps graduates and one professor who have been recipients of a Fulbright award in recent years. Kenny Artigues, B.A. 2013, had the opportunity to teach English in the Republic of Georgia. Sarah Hartzog, B.B.A. 2011, studied business at the graduate level in Mexico and completed an internship with an international corporation. Joseph Muller, B.A. 2011, taught English at the University of Silesia in Sosnowiec, Poland, and Emily Tuberville, B.A. 2011, taught English in Bangladesh. Nadia Al-Hashimi, B.A. 2010 graduate, used her Fulbright to study in Jordan, focusing on learning firsthand about the lives of women in various contexts from nomadic Bedouin to urban environments. Chelsi West, B.A. 2008, spent a year living in Albania in the capital Tirana, taking classes at the University of New York, Tirana, in social science and Albanian, and expanding her honors thesis research on Albanian hip-hop music, cultural transfer theory, and identity formation. Dr. Lynn Raley, associate professor of music at Millsaps College, received a Fulbright Scholar grant to teach music at National Chiao Tung University in Hsinchu, Taiwan, during the 2012-13 academic year. Fulbright alumni have become heads of state, judges, ambassadors, Cabinet members, ministers, CEOs, and university presidents, as well as leading journalists, artists, scientists, and teachers. They include 54 Nobel Laureates, 82 Pulitzer Prize winners, 29 MacArthur Fellows, 16 Presidential Medal of Freedom recipients, and thousands of leaders across the private, public and non-profit sectors.
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Giving back for generations to come
offer their suggestions on the use of the funds. As a senior at Central High School in Jackson in 1954, Blount was offered an appointment to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point with the provision he prepare by taking college-level math and science classes. “I chose to attend Millsaps and discovered immediately that if a person takes mostly math and science classes, then you are sur-
Dr. Richard Blount, B.S. 1958, a longtime Jackson ophthalmologist, credits Millsaps College with changing the course of his life. For that reason and in recognition of the high quality education that
rounded primarily by pre-med and pre-dental classmates,” he said. “Quickly, I became interested in our classwork and labs.” By the end of that first semester, Blount notified the congressman who had secured his appointment to West Point that his plans had changed and he would remain at Millsaps to pursue preparation for
Millsaps continues to provide, Blount and his wife, Martha, have funded
medical school. Dr. J.B. Price, then chairman of the chemistry depart-
a $1-million charitable trust, naming Millsaps College the beneficiary.
ment at Millsaps, was also faculty president of Alpha Epsilon Delta,
“We wanted to do this to give back to an institution that we love and respect,” Blount said.
the national health pre-professional honor society. “In 1958, a letter of recommendation from Dr. Price was a ticket to medical school,” Blount said. “He offered me a letter of endorsement to medical school at Baylor, and a very useful summer externship at the University of Mississippi Medical Center.” Blount earned his medical degree from Baylor Medical School in Houston, Texas. He completed an internship at Emory medical school, an introduction to ophthalmology at Harvard, an internship at Emory University Medical Center, and fellowships at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital in New York and Children’s Hospital in Washington, D.C. While an intern in Atlanta, Cliff Rigby, B.A. 1956, a Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity brother, gave Blount the name and phone number of a classmate at Columbia Theological Seminary. “I knew immediately when she opened her dorm door and said, ‘I’m Martha,’ that was it,” Blount said. “We married in 1963 and moved to San Francisco to fulfill my military obligation at the Presidio military installation.” Blount returned to Jackson in 1969 and established his practice, eventually caring for more than 20,000 patients. Blount is married to the Rev. Dr. Martha Means Blount, and they have two sons: David, a Missis-
The Dr. Richard L. Blount and Martha M. Blount Charitable Remainder Unitrust has a 10-year term and will terminate and distribute all assets to the College in September 2026. “This is a gracious and generous gift on behalf of their confidence in the mission and vision of Millsaps College,” said Dr. Robert W. Pearigen, president of Millsaps. “Their dedication to Millsaps will make a positive difference in the education of our students for generations to come.” The irrevocable gift may be used as directed by the Board of Trustees of the College, but the Blounts will have the opportunity to
sippi state senator, and Philip, a faculty physician of physical medicine, sports medicine, and rehabilitation at Methodist Rehabilitation Center and UMMC. “As we have reflected upon the contributions of Millsaps to our lives throughout the years,” Blount said, “we recall a message from former Millsaps president Dr. Homer Ellis Finger Jr. that ‘Millsaps has been from its earliest history motivated by a spirit of service, of ministry in the broad sense—to students, to community, to nation, to church. The quality of this motive is such that service to the student is also service to the community and service to the community includes service to church and to nation.’”
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Millsaps College expertise assists the Conference Debra McIntosh, archivist for both Millsaps College and the Mississippi Methodist Conference, knew with a glance there was something familiar about the handwritten manuscript before her. With research, McIntosh confirmed that the manuscript discovered by Henry Scott and his sister Rosemary Scott Ainsworth, tucked away in boxes of family mementos, was indeed the two missing volumes that would complete the Mississippi Methodist history written by the Rev. John G. Jones. Scott shared the manuscript with his pastor, the Rev. Phillip Dearman, and Dearman suggested he consult McIntosh. “I recognized the structure of the writing, which was similar to the first two volumes John G. Jones had written about Mississippi Methodist history for the years 1799-1845,” McIntosh said. “He wrote in chapters, summarizing each chapter at the beginning of the narrative, and covering a complete year of conference activity per chapter. The dates, layout of pagination, and enumeration of chapters were further clues. We have manuscripts for the second volume in our collection, and they had similar markups for printing.” The last two volumes were presumed lost in a fire, and the Rev. John B. Cain (for whom the Mississippi Methodist Conference archive, housed at Millsaps-Wilson Library, is named) wrote the final volume in 1939. The manuscripts were originally written between 1872 and 1876, with the first volume published in 1887 and the second volume in 1908. “It took over 100 years to find and publish the last two volumes of the original four-volume manuscript,” she said. McIntosh supervised the publication of the long lost manuscript, which contains more than 600 pages of handwritten narrative. She called the Mississippi Department of Archives and History for advice about document conservation and consulted Dr. Bill Storey, professor of history at Millsaps, to get a historian’s perspective about publication.
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McIntosh worked with Millsaps student Lauren Hoth, B.S. 2013, from 2012 until 2013 to transcribe the manuscript, and from 2014 until 2015 worked with Dr. Walter G. Howell, who wrote chapter notes, introduction and epilogue. The book is professionally indexed. The production of the book has been a long-term project that started when the manuscript was donated to the archives in 2009, McIntosh said. Conservation and digitization took place from 2010-2011, transcription in 2012-2013, editing and indexing in 2014-2015. McIntosh said many people at Millsaps College offered their expertise including Tom Henderson, then librarian at the College, and Kelley Matthews, graphic designer for the College. The book is appealing to anyone interested in first-person accounts of Mississippi and southern history, as well as church history. “John G. Jones was an eyewitness to the events, and a contemporary of the people he was writing about.” McIntosh said. “He lived from 1804 to 1888, serving as a Methodist circuit-riding minister in Mississippi for his entire adult life. He writes factually yet colorfully of the controversies of the day and gives detailed accounts of pioneer churches, struggles with slavery, memoirs of ministers, camp meetings, love feasts, travails of wartime, perils of circuit riding, ministerial conduct, discipline of ministers, yellow fever, shouting revivals, conference politics, and family names.” During her research, McIntosh discovered that Scott and Ainsworth were descendants of the writer. Scott and Ainsworth only knew that the manuscript had belonged to their grandmother, Mary Letitia Holloman Scott. She was the first female graduate of Millsaps College in 1902, and received a master of arts in 1903. “It took a good bit of research and detective work to determine the family connection, provenance, and confirm that these were indeed the missing manuscripts,” McIntosh said. “I think that’s a really great part of the story.” The manuscript was published this year as A Complete History of
Methodism in the Mississippi Conference, Vols. III & IV, 1846-1869, by the Mississippi Conference Commission on Archives and History. To purchase a copy of the book, call the Conference United Methodist Church office at 601-354-0515 and ask for David Stotts or Laura Rollins, or Debra McIntosh at the J.B. Cain Archives of Mississippi Methodism at 601-974-1077 or email her at archives@millsaps.edu. The book costs $49.95 plus $3.50 for shipping.
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Familiar face returns to Millsaps as the Chaplain and Director of Church Relations
Galloway United Methodist Church, and Millsaps College,” said Shelton. “The opportunity to serve the convergences of these great loves is extremely humbling. I covet prayers for all.” Bishop James Swanson Sr. of the United Methodist Conference of Mississippi supported the opportunity for Shelton to transition to Millsaps. “Dr. Shelton has served Galloway United Methodist Church faithfully and fruitfully for the last nine years,” Swanson said. “I have every confidence that he will be an excellent addition to the leadership team of Millsaps College. He is uniquely qualified to serve both the church and the higher education community. As Joey serves in this
The Rev. Dr. Joey Shelton, B.B.A. 1982, will assume the role of chaplain and director of church relations, effective July 1. Shelton is currently the senior pastor of Galloway United Methodist Church in Jackson, a position he has held since January 2008. “This is such an exciting opportunity for Millsaps College, and we are looking forward to Rev. Shelton joining us on campus,” said Dr. Robert W. Pearigen, president of Millsaps. “Joey brings to the position not only a wealth of pastoral experiences in the Church and in higher education but also a deep knowledge of, and commitment to, Millsaps. This selection represents a major development in our strategic plan’s goal to strengthen our partnership and affiliation with the United Methodist Church.”
new position as chaplain and director of church relations, I believe he will enrich the relationship between the Mississippi Conference and Millsaps College. For this reason, I am glad to make this appointment.” After graduating from Millsaps, Shelton earned a law degree at the University of Mississippi School of Law and practiced law. He later earned a master of divinity degree from The Divinity School at Duke University. Shelton serves on the board of Mississippi Methodist Senior Services, Inc., and is in his final year of service on the Millsaps College Board of Trustees, where he is the current chair of the Academic Affairs Committee. He is married to the Rev. Dr. Connie Shelton, and they have two daughters.
“I have four professional and vocational loves: the Mississippi Conference of the United Methodist church, the Center for Ministry,
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Scientific exploration on and off campus When it comes to scientific exploration, some Millsaps College students collaborate with their professors to conduct meaningful research on campus, while others may work alongside scientists across the street at the University of Mississippi Medical Center. For students, the experience pays off by bringing concepts they have studied in the classroom and read about in textbooks to life. “In the past, I have always found that when I am struggling with
terson, who has conducted research with scientists at Mayo Clinic in his hometown of Jacksonville, Fla. A biochemistry major, he plans to attend an M.D.-Ph.D. program and eventually practice oncology and do bench-side and clinical research. Patrick Davis, a Millsaps junior from Shreveport, La., is improving his laboratory skills and seeing firsthand how neuroscience research is conducted thanks to work in a lab at UMMC. He is working with Dr. James K. Rowlett, professor of psychiatry and human behavior, and Dr. Kevin Freeman, assistant professor of psychiatry and human behavior, to examine the addictive properties and neural mechanisms leading to addiction in opioids and benzodiazepines. “I learn laboratory skills and etiquette and see firsthand how neuroscientific research is conducted,” said Davis, who is majoring in neuroscience and cognitive studies and plans to eventually enter an
a topic in my science courses, the topic became clearer once I physi-
M.D.-Ph.D. program. “These are skills that are critical to have if I con-
cally applied it in lab,” said Jaren Reeves-Darby, a Millsaps senior
tinue to pursue research, and they are skills that can only be learned
who is from Jackson.
through firsthand experience.”
Reeves-Darby, a neuroscience and cognitive studies major and
Amanda Kaminski, a Millsaps senior from Southaven, said the re-
Spanish minor, works in a neuroscience lab at UMMC that seeks to
search she has conducted on campus in the W.M. Keck Center for In-
identify potential chemical compounds as pharmaceutical treat-
strumental and Biochemical Comparative Archaeology has given her
ments for alcoholism.
the ability to work on a team with members of diverse backgrounds.
“I knew joining the lab would give me valuable exposure and
With the guidance of Dr. Timothy Ward, associate dean of sci-
increase my knowledge of neuroscience,” said Reeves-Darby, who
ences and professor of chemistry, students in the Keck Lab analyze
plans to pursue a doctorate of medicine and philosophy degree after
archaeological artifacts such as pieces of pottery or pipe stems for
graduation and become a medical researcher.
traces of fatty acids or hallucinogenic substances like mescaline to
Karam Rahat (pictured with Dr. Cory Toyota), a Millsaps junior, said his research with Toyota, assistant professor of organic chem-
better understand the lives of ancient peoples. “The Keck Lab has always been an inclusive place where stu-
istry, has made him appreciate the abstract nature of the learning
dents from several different countries work together on a research
process.
project and share in the duties and credit,” said Kaminski. “I’ve
“What I appreciate most is that we do a great deal of critical
enhanced my public speaking skills by presenting my work at confer-
thinking on a number of surprisingly conceptual problems,” said
ences and that should prove valuable for future interviews. Another
Rahat. “It’s refreshing to know and see these concepts in practice
skill I have developed is a sense of perseverance.”
and manipulated to further our understanding. While I have picked
Kaminski, who is majoring in biochemistry and seeking admit-
up many concrete details during my research, it’s the nature of that
tance to medical school, said her work in the Keck Lab is important.
abstract learning from the process that I’ve truly come to appreciate.”
“My work in the Keck Lab allows me to uncover information about
Rahat works with Toyota to research the modes of transmission of the trichomonas vaginalis virus that infects a protozoan known as T. vaginalis. This particular virus is transmitted from cell to cell as well as the factors that influence this behavior. Rahat, who is majoring in biochemistry and philosophy, plans to enroll in an M.D.-Ph.D. program after graduation from Millsaps.
past societies that would have otherwise been lost, which I find incredibly meaningful,” she said. Sara Barker of Southaven, who completed a senior Honors thesis on residues in pipe stems, said the research she has conducted in the Keck Lab using sophisticated machinery to analyze archaeological artifacts has been life changing for her.
Ty Patterson, a Millsaps senior, understands the significance of
“Because of the opportunity to conduct honors research with Dr.
the research he conducts with Dr. Sabrice Guerrier, assistant profes-
Ward, I was able to learn what it is I want to devote my life to doing,”
sor of biology at Millsaps, They are studying the function of the
said Barker, who is majoring in biochemistry. “My experiences have
protein reticulon and its role in the cellular process called autophagy.
helped me mold my career path away from medical school toward
“I believe this research allowed me to both gain valuable lab experience that I will hopefully use throughout my career while also
graduate school and earning a Ph.D.” BY ZARIA BONDS, CLASS OF 2019
understanding more about the world on a cellular level,” said Pat-
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Creating a unique, educational landscape
• Ventures, which explores a problem or tightly focused set of problems from multiple perspectives, with students proposing possibilities for resolution, and engaging in project-based work, collaborative learning, creative risk-taking, and adaptive strategies for problem-solving. • Connections classes that address a specific topic within a single
Dr. Shadow JQ Robinson collaborates with professors across campus and across disciplines who teach students to work together, solve problems, and learn to communicate better. That’s among his duties as director of the Millsaps College Compass Curriculum, introduced in the fall of 2015 and designed to help students navigate an increasingly complex and rapidly changing world. “I admire this curriculum so much that I volunteered to be the director,” said Robinson, chair of the Department of Physics. “The Compass Curriculum is unique in the educational landscape. It directly develops a number of important skills in the students while simultaneously allowing them to explore a broad range of intellectual interests.” One thing he likes about the Compass Curriculum is it will provide students with a more interdisciplinary view. “They won’t think of each subject as its own box. Their education is a more cohesive experience, ” said Robinson, who is responsible for systematic and deliberate assessment of student learning outcomes related to the curriculum. Before leaving Millsaps, students will have an informed command of thinking and reasoning, communication, integrative and collaborative learning, and problem solving and creative practice. The curriculum’s objects are spread throughout students’ four-year experience.
COMPASS CURRICULUM IS COMPOSED OF: • A required year-long first-year course, Our Human Heritage, a humanities-based, interdisciplinary exploration of mankind and world cultures that considers intellectual development, artistic expression, and social and cultural evolution, from pre-history until the present. 14
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humanities discipline and in the topic’s historical context. Students will create formal and informal communication products that demonstrate critical listening, reading, and, where appropriate, aural and visual comprehension of course material. • Explorations, which focuses on knowledge domains like business, fine arts, the natural world, the social world, foreign languages, and science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. • The Major Experience, a capstone exercise directly connected with Millsaps’ vision of producing transformative leaders who will have positive impacts “across the street and around the globe” through action on, or beyond, the Millsaps campus. Examples include study abroad, field-based courses, communityengaged coursework, undergraduate research, honors projects, Ford Fellowships, and internships. The curriculum includes a requirement for two semesters of competency of a non-native language as well as a business literacy course. “We have an acclaimed school of business, the Else School of Management, and we want all of our students to benefit from that,” Robinson said. Robinson, who has taught at Millsaps for eight years, has served as Faculty Council president at Millsaps and is the director of the James Observatory. His professional and avocational interests range from astrophysics and number theory to literature and creative writing. He is a member of both Phi Beta Kappa and the Association for General & Liberal Studies, a champion of the liberal arts.
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Plantation narratives in the Deep South Millsaps College freshmen enrolled in Our Human Heritage: Power classes recently visited two plantations in south Louisiana, Whitney and Oak Alley, to study power relations in the plantation system and, more importantly, to analyze how the legacy of slavery is portrayed today in plantation tourism. “It’s important to bring students to this place, so they can see the
is powerful,” said Dr. Laura E. Franey, associate professor of English. Morgan Vincent, a freshman from Lafayette, La., agreed. “I didn’t really know how brutal it was until actually seeing it for myself.” Driving past sugar cane fields, Whitney Plantation resembles other 18th-century plantation homes on the Great River Road. The tour, however, leaves the plantation house to the end. Guides walk visitors through the paths of the enslaved workers who built and ran the former indigo and sugar cane plantation. Prominent exhibits include Antioch Baptist Church, slave quarters, and jail cells used to hold slaves before they went on the auction block. For Payton Passantino, a freshman from Baton Rouge, La., two things stood out to her: how many enslaved children died in the par-
sugar cane, the buildings, the relationships between the owners and
ish—more than 2,200 have been identified—and the way in which the
the enslaved people,” said Dr. David C. Davis, associate professor of
plantation guide discussed responsibility for the institution of slavery.
history. “You can talk about the plantation experience, describe it,
“Our guide emphasized that everyone contributed to slavery. It
and show pictures, but having students walk the grounds and see the
cannot be pinned on one type of people. We typically think of slavery
location—that’s the significance of going to a place.”
being the result of one race or region.”
Whitney Plantation, once a sugar cane plantation with 350 en-
Many visitors spend a great deal of time at the Wall of Honor, a
slaved workers, is one of the only historic sites in the country focused
series of granite stones engraved with the names of hundreds of slaves
solely on the slave experience. Oak Alley features the traditional
who lived, worked, and died there. Davis said it was important for his
Southern plantation narrative.
students to see the wall up close, especially when analyzing power
The day trip was designed and organized by Dr. Elise L. Smith, professor of art history and Sanderson Chair of Arts and Science, and
between plantation owners and slaves. “When we talked about the impact of slavery in our class, one of
Our Human Heritage: Power team instructors, to help freshmen make
the points we discussed was how slaves are dehumanized and their
connections between their Compass Curriculum coursework and the
names are taken from them,” Davis said. “One of the processes I think
history and landscapes of the South. The trip was designed as part of
historians should be working towards is restoration, to restore the hu-
the College’s “Across the Street and Around the Globe” strategic focus.
manity to people. Whitney Plantation begins to do that. These were
“Whitney Plantation is attractive for us to bring students to because it is the only one focused on the slave experience. You can see everything from the slaves’ point of view instead of the owner’s. To experience that instead of the way the Old South is usually romanticized
real people. They were children. They were families. They were not anonymous field hands. Coming here we begin to see that.”
Watch a video from the trip at millsaps.edu/whitney-plantation. BY SOPHIE WOLF
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Prison outreach program relies on storytelling More than a dozen inmates at the Federal Correctional Complex in Yazoo City learned to use storytelling as a way to practice writing and public speaking skills thanks to Millsaps professors Dr. Stephanie Rolph and Peter Friedrich. Over the course of two and a half weeks last June, the professors taught basic communication and performance skills that were meant to serve as a foundation for future academic work. The course was intended to encourage students to connect with their personal histories and prepare those stories for a public audience. Through assigned readings, storytelling exercises, and application of performance strategies, each student practiced interpersonal communication, public speaking, writing, and theatre performance. “They turned in a series of ‘stories’ to me that I gave back with revisions and they worked with Peter to turn them into personal performances of their ‘story’ for the community of wardens, administrators, and other inmates within their facility,” said Rolph, assistant professor of history.
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The course culminated with a performance of “If The Hat Fits,” a series of short plays in front of an audience of inmates, correctional officers, and administrators. Friedrich, assistant professor of theatre, said, “Dr. Rolph and I put in a lot of work, as well as driving back and forth, but the correctional officers and administrators also took on a lot of extra duties to make it possible. The performance was a memorable reward for everyone involved—and we’d love to make some more memories there. “ Also in June, Rolph co-taught with Dr. Otis W. Pickett, assistant professor of history at Mississippi College and co-founder of the Prison to College Pipeline program, a class at the Central Mississippi Correctional Facility in Pearl. The Mississippi Humanities Council and Mississippi College providing funding for the class. “This program was the first credit-bearing course offered to women in a state/ regional facility in the state, and it was amazing,” Rolph said. Each of the 18 women who completed the class was eligible to receive three hours of elective humanities/history credit from Mississippi College, which could be transferred to any accredited institution of higher learning should she choose to pursue a degree upon release. Course work involved testing, writing, reading, and reflection, some of which was shared by the inmates during their graduation from the course. Rolph hopes that these experiences will provide a foundation for future, Millsaps-credited work with incarcerated students.
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A project of a lifetime Dr. James E. Bowley, professor of religious studies at Millsaps College, recently completed an arduous task to which he devoted 20 years: The Dead Sea Scroll Concordance. Bowley worked with professors Dr. Martin Abegg (British Columbia) and Dr. Ed Cook (Washington, D.C.) to compile the official concordance of the Dead Sea Scrolls, which were written between 250 B.C.E. and 50 C.E. A concordance is an alphabetical listing of every single word in a text or set of texts. Concordances are foundational tools of all textual scholarship, and once the work is done, it serves all scholars for many generations. Because the Dead Sea Scrolls contain the oldest forms of biblical texts, this concordance is essential for studying the origins of modern Bibles. “For example, if you wonder what the authors of the Scrolls thought about ‘messiah’, you could simply look up that word and find all the places where they talk about ‘messiah,”’ Bowley said. “When you do this, you find out that they thought much differently than, for example, New Testament authors did about messiah. In fact, they believed in numerous messiahs.” The concordance project dates to 2000 when Abegg worked out a deal and contract with the largest academic publisher in Europe, E.J. Brill, for the team of himself, Bowley, and Cook to produce the official concordance of the Dead Sea Scrolls. “We split the work up into three main categories,” Bowley said. “In 2003, we published the concordance of all the writings that were unknown prior to the Scrolls discovery (non-biblical texts). In 2009, we put out the concordance of all previously known books that are now in modern-day Bibles. In 2015 we finished by concording all the texts that were found in other caves in the Dead Sea area from that same era.” Exactly who will buy the concordance that is five large volumes, contains a total of 1,988 pages and 250,538 entries, and costs more than $1,100? Some lay people will use it, Bowley said, but mostly the thousands of scholars who study the Dead Sea Scrolls. It’s all in Hebrew, Aramaic, or Greek, and there are English translations of each word too, so it can function like a dictionary, he said. It is also incorporated in some text data software, so some people buy it that way, he said. The project to which Bowley devoted nearly 20 years is now the only and official concordance of Dead Sea Scroll and other Judean Desert texts—and the basis for scholarly analysis for many decades to come.
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An Electoral Collage: A montage of reactions to the 2016 presidential election conveys the
College’s commitment to ideological diversity
2016 Presidential Election
I
Electoral Votes Popular Votes
Trump
304
62,979,879
Clinton
227
65,844,954
f the election of 2016 could be seen as a Rorschach test of the American psyche, with reactions a clue to the character of the nation, Millsaps might be revealed as a beacon of balance and civility, tolerance and restraint—a merging of blue and red into the College’s signature purple in a world of increasingly stark black and white. Opinions on Republican President Donald J. Trump’s electoral vote victory over his Democratic rival, former Secretary
of State Hillary Clinton, who won the popular vote by almost three million ballots, are fiercely held among faculty, staff, and students, convictions are fervently argued, and Millsaps students turned out shortly after the vote to voice their support for respectful dialogue and for those on campus who might feel threatened by a Trump presidency. But there has been a willingness on both sides to at least try to see the opposing point of view—a willingness that may be less apparent among elite coastal institutions like Yale University, where students organized a midnight “primal scream” as election results were coming in and American University in Washington, D.C., where flags were burned on campus to a chorus of obscenities.
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“While, yes, we are protesting against a rhetoric that’s happened, we’re not anti-anything really here today,” senior Karam Rahat, a
points on the left or right,” he said. And within those College gates, Dr. Nathan R. Shrader, assistant
biochemistry major who organized the Millsaps demonstration, told
professor of political science, invited students to an “election watch”
Sarah Fowler of The Clarion-Ledger. “It’s more of a solidarity demon-
in the Leggett Living Room in the A. Boyd Campbell College Center.
stration.”
Shrader, who served as legislative aide and deputy director of communications to the late Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. Catherine Baker Knoll,
Participating in the demonstration were members of “groups Trump vilified,” said Dr. Robert S. McElvaine, Elizabeth Chisholm
interned in Washington for the late U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter of Penn-
Chair of Arts and Letters and professor of history. “They were Muslim,
sylvania, and worked at the Center on Regional Politics at Temple
gay, and other students who seriously feel like they might be in danger.
University, said the Millsaps community’s mature and measured
The Trump campaign made it okay for people to be shouting hate-
response contrasted with what his peers elsewhere in academia said
ful things, spreading Ku Klux Klan graffiti, and for white nationalist
they had observed.
groups to be giving Nazi salutes. People are not just afraid of what this means for the country but also for themselves.”
“We have all seen news coverage in the weeks following the election of unrest on college campuses in other parts of the country, as
Unexpectedly, the Muslim student who organized the demonstration had lunch the next day with Trump supporters, said Kenneth L.
well as what appears to be a lack of interest among some individuals in actually trying to understand why the results turned out as they did,”
Townsend, B.A. 2004,
Shrader said.
executive director of the
I assigned the students to “ seek out a classmate, friend,
Millsaps Institute for Civic and Professional
or neighbor in their residence hall who voted for a different candidate and to have face-toface conversations with them... I would challenge every professor in every classroom in America to do the same, since we will never truly understand one another and our differences without reasoning through them together.
Engagement, assistant professor of political science, and special assistant to Dr. Robert W. Pearigen, president of the College. “That’s unusual,” Townsend said. “Sometimes you see people portrayed in the media as crybabies or overly sensitive, but Millsaps students have been extremely mature and ar-
—DR. NATHAN SHRADER, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF POLITICAL SCIENCE
ticulate,” he said. “Students don’t mean to be crying wolf, but instead
”
“I have colleagues who teach at other institutions who have told me that they were never able to have a meaningful dialogue with their students about the outcome. That was the exact opposite of what I experienced with our students. Regardless of which candidate they backed, Millsaps students were ready just a few days after the election to thoroughly and realistically analyze the outcome and its impact on the country’s future.”
Shrader said he believes this stems from Millsaps’ commitment to
want to understand what led Trump supporters to be Trump support-
critical thinking about serious issues and its welcoming of opposing
ers. It’s baffling for some students to contemplate their friends voting
views. “For example, a few days after the election a student who sup-
for someone who said some of the things Trump said, but they are
ported one candidate made a somewhat disparaging generalization
genuinely curious and open to what led their peers to their decision. ”
about the supporters of a different candidate,” Shrader said.
“I found that same kind of environment during my time at
“Knowing that there were several supporters of each in the room,
Millsaps,” said Baton Rouge political consultant Trey Ourso, B.A.
I assigned the students to seek out a classmate, friend, or neighbor in
1992. “In fact, one of my best friends and a fraternity brother was Bill
their residence hall who voted for a different candidate and to have
Russell [B.A. 1992]. He was president of the College Republicans while
face-to-face conversations with them about what issues or ideas mo-
I was president of the College Democrats. We wrote a column together
tivated them to make that choice, and to find at least one area where
in The Purple & White. We enjoyed the back and forth, but it never got
they may be in agreement and could work together on a solution.
ugly. I think that Millsaps instills an attitude that it is OK to disagree and to express those disagreements.” Political strategist Brad Chism, B.A. 1982, said the College’s community involvement is one explanation for that. “Millsaps encourages
“I would challenge every professor in every classroom in America to do the same, since we will never truly understand one another and our differences without reasoning through them together.” Townsend said the College presents a hopeful contrast to carica-
its students to venture beyond the campus gates for internships and
tured portrayals of coddled college students in settings where those
service opportunities, and in doing so these students are reminded
who identify themselves as liberal may be as closed-minded as their
that the challenges facing America are seldom as simple as the talking
conservative counterparts. “To be a liberal here you have at least
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encountered the conservative perspective,” Townsend said, whereas
sitions taken by Trump and those who surround him—e.g., Steve Ban-
elite coastal enclaves of liberal like-mindedness may not foster that
non, former head of the alt-right outlet Breitbart News, and Trump’s
perspective. “At Millsaps there is more of a true liberal-mindedness.”
chief strategist.
Herein lies a paradox within the thought and practice of liberalism in general, Townsend said: on one hand respect for and openness to others’ ways of thinking, and on the other a particular social agenda
ing in The Huffington Post and The Clarion-Ledger—like the one that
of affirmative advocacy.
asked “Can someone out there explain how it is possible for a Chris-
“Liberalism lives with a tension between those ideals,” Townsend
tian even to consider voting for Donald Trump?”. In the New York
said. “If you are truly open to everything, it becomes complete relativ-
Daily News he wrote that Trump’s policies were the same as those
ism and anything goes for anyone. But if you are too insistent on
pursued by the Republican Party in the 1920s, and later under George
advocating a certain way of living in the world or prioritizing particu-
W. Bush, that led to the Great Depression and the Great Recession
lar values, then you can become dogmatic and fail to be open to ideas outside your comfort zone. “Millsaps lives with this characteristic tension of liberalism.
respectively. As a professor McElvaine witnessed the impact of the election on students taking his courses in the fall, including a Ventures
We advocate certain values as
class that examined the views
an institution, but we also are a
of women across the sweep
place where different ideas can
of human history. (As part
be discussed and deliberated
of the Compass Curriculum,
upon. We look to our mission
Ventures leads students to
and vision statements for
investigate current affairs from
direction, reminding ourselves of both our ‘heritage
multiple perspectives and propose possibilities for reso-
of social justice’ and our
lution, engaging in project-
fundamental commitment
based work, collaborative
to ‘open inquiry and free expression.’” Shrader agrees that this election has underscored the importance of on-campus intellectual diversity. “This election demonstrates
learning, creative risk-taking, and adaptive strategies for problem solving.) It was an ironic twist of history, McElvaine said, that the nation’s first female presidential nomi-
the need for colleges and universities to
nee was pitted against a man
serve as the first line of defense for the
who had made statements wide-
free marketplace of ideas, even if some of those ideas may be unpopular within the academy’s walls,” he said. “Every academic
ly regarded as misogynist. “Some students may not have been as horrified as the rest, but in general they were amazed someone could be running for president who had said some of the things he
institution in the country—including Millsaps—
had, bragging about sexually assaulting women. That it was close was
ought to recognize and respect the diversity of opinions among their
baffling. Students wrote group papers on how the situation of women
student bodies and be careful not to make students feel as if they’re be-
in America today was reflected in the election. Students were vocal
ing disregarded for not sharing the political or ideological viewpoints
and outraged by what Trump was saying about women and the idea
of the majority on campus.”
that people could still go out and vote for him.”
Yet there is genuine concern, even among more conservative fac-
In a class that focused on the 1960s, McElvaine’s students looked
ulty members, about what the election may mean to some members
at the way much of the election was centered on Trump support-
of the Millsaps community, Townsend said. “Just as one example,”
ers who wanted to go back in time, to recreate the idyllic suburban
he said, “one professor has been circulating a statement in support of
sidewalks of a “Leave It to Beaver” culture. “Republicans since the late
Muslim students, and among faculty, staff, and administrators there is
’60s have wanted to go back to the ’50s,” McElvaine said. “But since the
a sense of people looking for agency and for a way to be able to make
beginning of the new century a lot of things about the ’60s in terms of
a difference, to pay attention to those who might be most vulnerable,
race, women, and gay rights have become mainstream. The election
maybe simply expressing support by shooting them an e-mail.”
came down to a referendum on the ’60s: Do you want to endorse and
McElvaine said there was no room for compromise with some po-
22
And McElvaine, who has written or edited 10 books, has been publicly outspoken in his opposition to Trump, with columns appear-
www.millsaps.edu
codify the changes of the ’60s or go back?”
{FEATURE}
McElvaine points to the 1968 Sly and the Family Stone anthem
voter registration and voter education drive that resulted in 150 newly
“Everyday People,” which tapped into the countercultural zeitgeist of
registered voters. Combined with those registered in the fall semester,
the time, and its message that “we got to live together”:
we had about 180 students registered here on campus, which is a sig-
There is a yellow one That won’t accept the black one That won’t accept the red one That won’t accept the white one Different strokes For different folks . . . The chart-topping hit is representative of everything that Trump’s
nificant number given that we are a small campus community.” He said the students went door to door in residence halls on six nights to distribute forms and answer questions about the benefits of registering on campus. “The night before the election they went back to the 180 registered students and delivered information to them including the location of the polling place and times of operation, sample ballot copies, and information about where to meet if they needed a ride to the precinct,” Shrader said. “This was all done in a
campaign rhetoric—perceived by some as flying in the rainbow-col-
nonpartisan way and driven by a desire to increase civic engagement
ored face of multiculturalism—railed against, McElvaine said, “yet he
and participation on campus.”
got all that support.” And speaking of ’60s music, some would say this is not the time for the sound of silence. Ultimately, said Ourso, the alumnus and consultant: “Millsaps
Enthusiasm may have run higher earlier in the election season, while the primary field still held promise for many, but Shrader said he never detected apathy among students. “Although I felt as if students were more excited by some of the candidates running in the primary
should continue to be a voice for inclusion, human rights, women’s
election such as Bernie Sanders among the Young Democrats and John
rights, and equal justice. It’s more important today than ever.”
Kasich among the College Republicans, I did not at any time sense that
If passions were inflamed in the classroom, that often translated into action—leading, for instance, to the registration of scores of new
there was this lingering feeling of apathy on campus,” he said. Millsaps sophomore Weston Lindemann was elected to the Mis-
voters on campus. “I am very proud of the level of engagement and
sissippi Democratic Party’s State Central Committee and served as a
interest among our students leading up to this election,” Shrader said.
delegate to the Democratic National Convention for Sanders. Sopho-
“The 15 students in my freshman Ventures class led a nonpartisan
more Noah Crosley and Allie Peyton, B.A. 2015, a staff member of
Millsaps Magazine Winter 2017
23
{FEATURE}
the Mississippi Republican Party, spent the week in Cleveland, Ohio, working for the party during the Republican Convention, and two Young Democrats (freshman Jake Tipton and junior Jasmine Calvillo) and one of the College Republicans (sophomore Hunter Cooper) were also elected to leadership positions in their respective statewide organizations. Tipton worked for the Clinton campaign in Mississippi
The Making of the Makers of the Presidents (and Other Causes)
during the general election. Other students worked on campaigns throughout the state.
If President Donald J. Trump’s path to 270 electoral votes seemed
Millsaps junior Dominic Sanderson interned for a semester with the
to some statistically improbable, consider the odds that a small school
reelection campaign of Mississippi Supreme Court Justice Jim Kitch-
in the South like Millsaps could produce two of the top six campaign
ens and sophomore Hamilton Armour worked on the campaign of
strategists in the country—as recognized this year by a prestigious
Judge Ed Hannan for the Mississippi Court of Appeals.
national association of consultants—as well as other marquee figures
Shrader said he had heard from some students who were troubled by the outcome of the election and a smaller group that was ecstatic. His response to both? “Use this opportunity to organize and become even more highly engaged in the process,” Shrader said. “The students who were upset with the results should begin working to organize for the 2018 midterm elections and 2020 presidential election. Those who were satisfied with the outcome shouldn’t celebrate for too long without becoming more deeply engaged in the political process in order to defend their victories, since nothing in politics is permanent.”
transforming the American political landscape. A remarkable roll of alumni testifies to the influential way Millsaps voices are resonating in the nation’s halls of power: • Hal Malchow, B.A. 1973, the visionary pioneer of “microtargeting,” whose Washington-based consulting giant MSHC Partners helped power the campaigns of former President Bill Clinton, Al Gore, John Kerry, and Hillary Rodham Clinton, won the lifetime achievement award this year from the American Association of Political Consultants and was inducted into its Hall of Fame. • Trey Ourso, B.A. 1992, of Baton Rouge won the American Association of Political Consultants 2015 Pollie Excellence Award for Cam-
24
www.millsaps.edu
{FEATURE}
paign Strategist of the Year for his work on Gumbo PAC during the
of the ways that we have conducted campaigns,” he said. “I credit
2015 gubernatorial campaign in Louisiana.
Millsaps with helping me value my own perspectives more than the
• Brad Chism, B.A. 1982, founded Chism Strategies, with offices in Washington and Jackson. A Rhodes Scholar, Chism directed voter modeling and turnout programs for both Obama presidential campaigns and the 2016 Hillary Clinton campaign.
conventional wisdom that is often outdated and sometimes completely wrong.” Conventional wisdom would have told Knight Henry to “go to law school and maybe get a job as a lobbyist,” she said. But thanks to a few lucky breaks (and knowing someone who knew someone), she found
• John Jameson, B.A. 1979, a Duke University School of Law and Har-
herself helping Tim Kaine, the 2016 Democratic vice presidential
vard Business School alumnus, has led his Washington firm Winning
nominee, win his 2005 race for governor in Virginia, where he is now
Connections to garner awards for electoral and grass roots campaign
a U.S. senator. “Right after graduation, I got in the car and drove to
work for clients from MGM and Blue Cross Blue Shield to Planned Parenthood and the American Cancer Society. • And Washington consultant Jessica Knight Henry, B.A. 2004, at the age of 25 was named executive director of the Congressional Black Caucus’s political action committee. What they have in common is the belief that their experiences at Millsaps helped fuel their rise in the highly competitive world of political playmaking by daring them not only to think
Virginia,” Knight Henry said.
“
Millsaps encourages its students to venture beyond the campus gates for internships and service opportunities, and in doing so these students are reminded that the challenges facing America are seldom as simple as the talking points on the left or right.
”
—BRAD CHISM, B.A., 1982
for themselves but also to effectively express those thoughts. “We had small classes, we were challenged by professors, and
Taking the reins of the Congressional Black Caucus’s PAC so early in her career, Knight Henry said she relied on the skills she learned at Millsaps to find her way. “At times it was overwhelming, there were a lot of personalities with more experience on the board, and I had to find my voice as a young woman,” said Knight Henry, who six years ago founded The District Proper, a firm providing consulting services for political organizations, candidates, and nonprofit organizations. Some credit their ability to find a voice that can be heard
above the deafening din of politics to the nurturing and long-lasting
almost never had multiple choice or fill-in-the-blank tests,” said Mal-
bonds between Millsaps faculty and students. For instance, Ourso
chow, who is credited with revolutionizing the way political consul-
said, it was the late Howard Bavender—emeritus professor of political
tants use data. “We were taught to think, and we learned to write. If
science and a deeply revered figure in the Millsaps political science
you enter today’s world with those two skills you can have success in
department—who helped foster the intellectual curiosity that led to his
many professions.”
award-winning contributions to his field.
“The mad scientist of American politics,” according to The New
“I considered him a mentor and still have many of the books and
Republic, Malchow was well served by those skills. “In politics, I have
notes that he gave me throughout the years,” said Ourso, former execu-
always thought outside the box and in the process have changed many
tive director of the Louisiana Democratic Party and former national
The Millsaps College Political Science Department created the Samuel Kernell Award for Outstanding Research in Political Science in honor of Dr. Samuel Kernell, B.A. 1967, distinguished professor of political science at the University of California, San Diego. One of America’s most respected and trusted political scientists, Kernell is the author of numerous books and articles on American politics, including Going Public: New Strategies of Presidential Leadership, which is required reading in numerous graduate and undergraduate course on the u.s. presidency throughout the country. His introductory American government textbook, The Logic of American Politics ,is a fixture in over 100 introductory courses at leading colleges and universities.
The Kernell Award annually recognizes a Millsaps student who has demonstrated excellence in political science research. Sam and his wife, Dianne (Anderson) Kernell, B.A. 1967, generously funded the award after learning of the honor. The first Kernell Award was presented last year to Jordan Claire Albrecht, B.A. 2016, for her graduate schoolcaliber research entitled “Data Sources Used in Louisiana Legislation Banning Same-Sex Marriage: 1999 and 2004.” Her research project was originally developed in her Political Science Research Methods class and later presented at the New York State Political Science Association and Mississippi Political Science Association annual conferences in 2015. Albrecht now works as a political campaign professional in her native Louisiana. Millsaps Magazine Winter 2017
25
{FEATURE}
president of the Association of State Democratic Executive Directors.
Bloomberg’s Mayors Against Illegal Guns, and the Sierra Club to
“They are cherished keepsakes. Bav and I spent lots of time together
Obama for President, the American Cancer Association, and the Hu-
away from the College, and he eventually moved down to Baton Rouge
man Rights Campaign.
for a while. We even toured Europe together—he was a great guide!” Millsaps helps instill a passion for what to do in life, Ourso said.
Jameson’s firm has worked for every Democratic presidential nominee this century, and for issues like marriage equality, gun safety,
“In my case, it was to work in politics,” he said. “Millsaps provided the
and climate change. In 2015, working for Citizens for a Nuclear Free
foundation. I combined that foundation with a lot of hard work and
Iran, his firm ran the largest congressional constituent mobilization
perseverance—and got a couple of lucky breaks along the way.”
program in history, mustering more than 500,000 voters to call their
Jameson says he gained a grass-roots understanding of the nation during his two years of traveling to 44 states selling cookware. And he says he gained a fundamental understanding of political history from storied Millsaps professors like Bavender, Dr. Robert S. McElvaine, professor of history, and Dr. John Quincy Adams, emeritus professor of political science, who lives in D.C. where he stays in touch with Millsaps alumni through a book club he organized.
U.S. senators to oppose the Iran nuclear deal. For Chism, who has offices not far from the Millsaps campus, Bav-
“Bob McElvaine’s “witty weekly
news summary in his American history class inspired me to pay even more attention to world affairs, and my mentor (Howard) Bavender gave me a great appreciation for political history. And the habits I developed trying to exceed (John Quincy) Adams’s very demanding standards are something I continue to carry with me over three decades later.
“Bob’s witty weekly news summary in his
—JOHN JAMESON, B.A. 1979
”
American history class
the kind of demanding yet supportive teachers who fostered political perspective, and who expected and reaped great things from their students. “They loved the American political system with all its flaws and taught a healthy skepticism toward power and conventional thinking,” Chism said. He added that Dr. Charles Sallis, emeritus professor of history, led a Mississippi History
inspired me to pay even more attention to world affairs, and my men-
course that “explored in depth the gifts and the burdens we inherit
tor Bavender gave me a great appreciation for political history,” said
from the motherland.”
Jameson, whose writing has appeared in The New Republic, Playboy,
As Malchow recalls of those faculty: “What they had in common
and Campaigns & Elections. “And the habits I developed trying to
was that they did not ask students to regurgitate information or their
exceed Adams’s very demanding standards are something I continue
own viewpoints. There was material and facts you had to learn, but
to carry with me over three decades later.”
the focus was learning to think, formulate your own opinions, and de-
Maybe Trump could have used some of that grounding, Jameson said. “Trump would benefit immensely from sitting through an hour or two weekly tutorial summing up the lessons of Heritage,” Jameson
fend them even if they were completely different from the viewpoints of the professors.” Another Millsaps difference, for Knight Henry, is the College’s
said. “He’s a bright man, but I fear his shallow grasp of history will
emphasis on faith and its relationship to vocation, which she said has
lead him to make mistakes that he wouldn’t if he had a better apprecia-
helped her navigate the often cutthroat and bloodthirsty jungle of poli-
tion for past world events.”
tics. “The one thing Millsaps tries to convey to students over and over
That kind of Millsaps-bred appreciation of history was for Jame-
is the sense of greater works and a greater good, and how to reconcile
son the door from a small-town perspective to that of larger world. “I
your faith with the work you do,” Knight Henry said, adding that she
left Eupora, Mississippi, a curious person, but one whose intellectual
was drawn to politics because of its roots in public service.
exposure lay in a pretty narrow path,” Jameson said. “Sitting through
Sometimes it seems the only thing that can be expected from
Heritage as a freshman profoundly expanded that path and opened up
politics is the unexpected. And Knight Henry, who was on a pre-law
the world of Aristotle, John Locke, Aquinas, and so many other refer-
track at Millsaps, maintains that her political career remains astonish-
ence points that I continue to draw upon.”
ing to the teacher with whom she most interacted, Dr. Iren Omo-Bare,
Drawing on those giants of thought helped Jameson make a giant
associate professor of political science.
of his firm, Winning Connections. His research-driven approach to
“He challenged me in a lot of ways and taught politics from a
campaigning contributed to wins in some of the closest contests in
global perspective,” said Knight Henry. “To this day I think I surprise
the country, including those of Sen. Jon Tester of Montana, Sen. Al
him with the work that I’m doing. It’s not where he expected I would
Franken of Minnesota, and newly elected New Hampshire Sen. Mag-
end up.”
gie Hassan. Clients have ranged from Planned Parenthood, Michael 26
ender and Adams were
www.millsaps.edu
{FEATURE}
IF AT FIRST . . .
card companies, insurance companies were using data to predict what consumers might buy and mailing them catalogs, credit cards, and other commercial After leaving offers,” Malchow said. “In the meantime, political Millsaps, Hal campaigns were targeting based upon geography. So Malchow ran an instead of looking at individual voters and their voting attorney general’s records to determine who should receive calls or mailcampaign and a ings urging them to go to the polls, they would target congressional precincts with low turnout and mail all of the voters in campaign. Both that precinct—regardless of their past voting lost. participation.” “So I did what you do with a liberal arts Malchow used statistical techniques to calculate the probability that a voter education and a losing campaign record,” Malwould go to the polls in a particular election, that a voter was a Democrat or Repubchow said. “I went to law school. I did well in law lican, or that a voter might respond to a fundraising appeal. “These developments school, came back to Jackson, and practiced were obviously progress, but were opposed vehemently by the people who made law for two years. Hated it.” their living selling precinct targeting. Amazingly, it took about 12 years to achieve Then he managed the late Mike Sturdivant’s 1983 campaign for governor of widespread adoption.” Mississippi. “We lost, but our media consultant, [the late] Bob Squier, one of the two But Malchow said his most important contribution to politics is not data and or three top figures in the profession, liked the job I had done and recommended analytics but accountability and measurement. “For years, political campaigns me to a young congressman running for Senate named Albert Gore Jr.” Gore’s would try a new tactic, and if it sister lived in Greenville, knew won it would herald that tactic as Sturdivant, and recommended If you are working with a top consultant on the next great thing in politics. Malchow as well. But the truth is that terrible a Mississippi campaign and you are really good, campaigns often beat good “When I had my interview with Gore he said: ‘I have all these campaigns that are well run. Just there is a much better chance you will get donors who are going to ask because you won on election day noticed. The consultant will then pass your does not mean that your TV ads why in the world would I hire a campaign manager who has lost name around for other campaigns in the even or your mail or your phone calls three straight races? What am actually worked.” numbered years or even for other consultants I going to tell them?” Malchow So he helped bring about a said. new culture in political camlooking for staff. Getting in the door from Malchow replied: “Everyone paigning in which tactics are Mississippi is much easier than getting in in Tennessee thinks you have this scientifically tested. “If I want to election wrapped up with a big know whether a mailing actually the door from Illinois, as odd as that sounds. red bow on the top. Tell them you caused additional voters to vote, —HAL MALCHOW, B.A. 1973 found the hungriest campaign I pull a control group of between RECIPIENT OF THE AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF POLITICAL CONSULTANTS LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD manager in America who will not 10,000 and 50,000 voters who take a single detail for granted.” don’t get the mailing. After the Malchow was hired on the spot. “We won the campaign by a substantial marelection, I can calculate what percentage of voters in the treatment group, who got gin,” he said. “But I was not interested in working in the Senate. I liked campaigns. the mail, voted and what percentage of the voters in the control group, who did not So I began looking for a statewide race outside the South that I could manage.” get the mailing, actually voted.” Meanwhile, consultants Malchow had worked with knew that he understood Malchow said if the percentage was the same that meant the mailing did not direct-mail fundraising, which he had learned while supporting former Gov.William work. “If turnout was higher in the treatment group, then we can calculate based Winter’s education agenda for Mississippi. upon the quantities and differences in turnout the statistical reliability of that dif“There was only one big and expensive firm doing this work on the Democratic ference,” he said. “When we actually started measuring our tactics we learned that side,” Malchow said. “I started getting business referrals and decided to make it about 80 percent of everything we were doing in voter turnout was a total waste of a business. I started in a basement apartment in a bad section of D.C., with two money.” overdrawn credit cards and a rented computer. When I left the business in 2010, I Experimenting, measuring, and innovating have led to “surprising and more had the largest voter-contact firm in America with 150 employees.” effective” approaches, Malchow said, adding that much of this work is supervised Malchow was featured in the October 2016 issue of The Atlantic in a piece on at The Analyst Institute in Washington, of which Malchow is a founder and board the state of political consulting as the lonely pioneer-turned-master of “microtarmember. geting” to whom Hillary Clinton’s primary campaign eventually turned in 2008. The institute says its goal is “for all progressive political and social justice His tactics were revolutionary. campaigns to be informed by rigorous evidence.” When Malchow started out, he took note of the innovations in the commercial But what that means in what some have called “a post-fact world” where the marketplace that were transforming retail transactions. “Catalog companies, credit truth is irrelevant is anyone’s guess.
“
”
Millsaps Magazine Winter 2017
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{MAJOR SPORTS}
28
www.millsaps.edu
{MAJOR SPORTS}
Calling the shots on and off the field Gus Morris, B.B.A. 1982, wakes up at 5 a.m. each Monday during the fall, knowing the next six days will test his stamina. He won’t have an extended period of time off for more than 150 hours, but that’s OK. The 57-year-old officiates Southeastern Conference football
“I saw officials coming into our association that were a lot younger than I was, and I remember being in their position,” said Gus Morris, who has officiated SEC games for 27 seasons and the SEC championship game five times in his 31-year career. “I remember when I was in their position, looking at the guys that were the veteran officials thinking, ‘That’s who I want to be. I want to be working his games, I want to have an opportunity to go to bowl games like he’s going to.’ I was hoping they were thinking the same thing.” Gus Morris leaves PRISM Automotive about noon each Friday when he’s officiating a game, allowing time to eat dinner and review with the crew video of plays from the previous week’s game. On
games, owns a gym where his fellow officials can train for their jobs,
Saturdays, they watch a training video produced by the SEC, have a
and works full time at an automotive repair shop he also owns.
devotional, take an eight-question test featuring word problems, and
Gus Morris chuckles when asked how he survives such a busy
review game administration details before leaving their hotel two and
life before crediting his time at Millsaps College, where he earned his
a half hours before game time, riding in vans with a police escort to
bachelor’s degree while playing defensive end on the football team
the game.
and working several part-time jobs to help pay for college. By attending Millsaps, Gus Morris returned to the home state of both his mother and father. His mother, Polly, was from Philadelphia, and his father, George, from Vicksburg, was a highly touted high school athlete and Academic All-American who played for national champion Georgia Tech and its legendary coach Bobby Dodd. In
Gus Morris and his crew then make split-second decisions based on the 200-plus-page rule book while often sweating in the heat and humidity, with fans ready to boo if they’re not happy with a call. Floy Holloman, B.A. 1968, watches many of the games Gus Morris works, and jokes that he should wave when the camera is on him. “He always had a certain determination to get things done and do
1981, Dodd stated, in front of his peers, that George Morris was the
it right, whether it was sports or football or whether it was something
greatest player he ever coached.
else,” Holloman said. “I knew he’d be good at it.”
Unlike his father, Gus Morris was not an elite football player but
Gus Morris said he notices when fans are upset with a call, but
he loved the game. Millsaps proved to be the right fit for Gus Morris,
he doesn’t dwell on it for long. He’s too focused on getting a different
and his father recognized it and encouraged him to attend and play
football to use and making sure each team has only 11 players on the
for then head coach Harper Davis and then assistant coach Tommy
field with no duplicate numbers, the sidelines are clear, the formation
Ranager.
is legal, there are no illegal motions or ineligible players going out for
Many individuals at Millsaps helped him with his athletic and academic goals, he said. “I learned an awful lot while I was there,” Gus Morris said. “I
a pass and more. “You can’t let yourself get caught up in the external noise that’s going on because if you do then you’re going to miss what you’re out
know how to research, I know how to write, I know how to commu-
there to do,” he said. “It’s really not that tough if you keep things in
nicate with people, I know how to manage my time. Without those
perspective. It’s hard on an official that doesn’t have a lot of experi-
skills, I wouldn’t be able to do what I do.”
ence. But you also have to realize that you know the rules, you know
Tom Lewis, B.L.S. 1987, who played football with Morris, recognized his friend’s work ethic early. Both had been hired by a moving company one summer to transfer filing cabinets from an old government building into a new one.
how to apply the rules.” Another Millsaps alumnus, Tim Millis, B.A. 1967, also knows how to apply the rules. He has officiated NFL games and served as executive director of the NFL Referees Association. After the game is over, the crew will spend time watching video
“About 20 percent of the people did 90 percent of the moving,” Lewis
from their game. Gus Morris will typically arrive home at about 1 p.m.
said. “Gus was one of the 20 percent.”
Sunday, ready to start the next week.
A strong work ethic and fine-tuned time management skills
He’s missed weddings, funerals, reunions and other events, but
contribute to the success of Gus Morris. He spends his early morn-
that’s the price of commitment. Upon his retirement from officiating,
ing fall hours doing paperwork and updating the websites for his two
he’ll have time to make the most of those opportunities.
businesses. The Atlanta resident will then be at PRISM Automotive,
“You’ve got to love it and you’ve got to have passion for it and
the repair shop he opened in June 2000, for a full day of work about
you’ve got to be physically and mentally prepared to do it week in and
three hours later.
week out,” he said of his work as an SEC official. “It’s not a grind, but
Gus Morris spends his afternoons working out so he can run alongside some of the best college football players in the country each
it’s every week.” BY DANIEL PAULLING
Saturday. The physical demands of his work led him to create the Sports Officials Physical Training Institute in 2011.
Millsaps Magazine Winter 2017
29
{MAJOR SPORTS}
From player to coach Justin LeBlanc took an unlikely route to his dream job. LeBlanc, the Millsaps College women’s basketball head coach, finished his playing career with the men’s team in 2006 with plans to pursue an M.B.A. and a low-paying graduate assistant position, or even volunteer with his old team. LeBlanc desperately wanted to become a college basketball coach, a field he wanted to join since his junior year of high school. But then a restructuring of the athletic department allowed men’s basketball head coach Tim Wise, B.A. 1989, who also became the athletic director, to hire a full-time assistant. He chose LeBlanc even though his former player didn’t have any experience and was barely older than the players. LeBlanc realizes how lucky he was to receive such an opportunity. Most coaches go through years of grunt work and moves before earning such roles. “I was fortunate he gave me a chance,” LeBlanc said. “I was fortunate enough that he viewed me as somebody that could come in right away and go from playing with the current players to being one of their coaches and handling the transition from a professional standpoint.” And fortunate that his sister happened to date someone from their hometown of Larose, La., who played at Millsaps. He persuaded LeBlanc to continue his basketball career at Millsaps instead of giving up the sport and attending LSU. LeBlanc, who majored in business 30
www.millsaps.edu
administration and minored in French while playing shooting guard, impressed Wise with his focus during film sessions and meetings. Wise’s hire proved smart. LeBlanc, who also earned a master’s degree in sports management from the University of Southern Mississippi in 2011, spent four seasons at Millsaps and five at Centenary College in Shreveport, Louisiana before accepting his current job in August. He took over a program that went 19-9 last season and has won two of the past four Southern Athletic Association regular-season championships. “You always want to go into a practice — I call it the 30-minute test — and watch a coach and you know what he’s trying to get accomplished, (know that) there’s a plan there,” Wise said. “With Justin, I see that. You see the maturity and the organization and the attention to details.” LeBlanc admits his job requires demanding hours. He spends his rare days off calling or texting 20 recruits or driving to watch players within a three-hour radius. But LeBlanc carries all of the motivation he needs on a lanyard around his neck during practice. He uses a brass whistle that his grandfather, Rene LeBlanc, used during an excellent high school coaching career in Louisiana that started in the 1950s. Justin wants to make the same impact on his players that his grandfather had on his players — and he’s happy to do so at a place he considers home. “My wife and I went to school here, we were married here in Jackson, my son’s name is Jackson,” LeBlanc said. “To come back to Millsaps is just an opportunity we couldn’t pass up.” BY DANIEL PAULLING
{MAJOR SPORTS}
From student to Paralympic athlete Charlie Swearingen, B.S. 1999, wanted a second chance. He spent his first semester at Millsaps College in the fall of 1995 enjoying the fraternity life, in his words, not focusing on his courses. This caused him to struggle, leaving his father upset when he saw a report card with letters further down the alphabet than he’d hoped.
Swearingen, 39, joined the national team by happenstance. While working at UMMC in 2008, someone asked Swearingen, who was born without fibulas or ankle bones, whether he wanted to use a pair of advanced prosthetics designed for running. He ran a 5:45 mile on a treadmill, much quicker than he’d ever run before on his prosthetics. A video of him running went viral, leading to interest from a U.S. Paralympic coach who called and asked if he wanted to compete. Swearingen ran until June 2009, when he participated in a sitting volleyball clinic in Edmond, Okla., and immediately fell in love. On the flight home, Swearingen wrote a lengthy email to Jaime Fisher, volleyball head coach at Millsaps, asking for help. He sent
His father, having already paid
it right after he landed, and she
for the entirety of his son’s freshman
responded before he arrived home.
year, gave Swearingen an ultimatum:
“You could tell the passion and
Get your act together or you’ll be
how badly he wanted this,” Fisher
somewhere else your second year.
said. “I couldn’t miss this opportu-
“What that did was it made me
nity to help somebody who was that
realize that in life you have choices,”
passionate.”
said Swearingen, who also played first
Swearingen grew up playing
base for the Majors’ baseball team. “At
sand volleyball in Gulfport but
that point, I had made bad choices. If
had never received actual coach-
I was going to come out of this, I was
ing. Still, his ability to pass and set
really going to have to figure some-
impressed Fisher, who needed to
thing out.”
teach him the finer points of mov-
When he returned to campus for
ing around the court and do some
the spring 1996 semester, Swearingen
drills to improve his technique.
sought out his LS 1000 professor,
She recalls days during the
Dr. Briton E. Shell, assistant profes-
summer of 2009 that Swearingen
sor of biology, admitted he had been
worked an overnight shift as a flight
immature while failing Shell’s class
paramedic and then practiced.
the previous semester, and asked for
After a quick nap, he’d be back for
help in turning around his academic
more.
career.
“At no point would he cancel or
The advice led to Swearingen
make an excuse,” Fisher said. “He
earning a bachelor’s degree in geology
said, ‘you can push me harder.’ It
in 1999, landing his dream job as a
really has been one of those great
flight paramedic at the University of
experiences to be a part of, someone
Mississippi Medical Center, and putting him in a position to join the
who has that passion and been able to keep that passion and has set a
United States’ sitting volleyball national team.
goal and has never wavered from it.”
Shell spoke with Swearingen about how to complete his assign-
The practice allowed Swearingen, who quit his job at UMMC and
ments and study for tests. He also gave him a few issues of The New
lives in Denver because of his training, to compete over the summer
Yorker, whose articles gave Swearingen templates needed to write
in the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, where the United
papers, built his vocabulary, and helped him learn to think critically.
States finished eighth.
He used the latter skill as a flight paramedic when he would rush
Swearingen admits his success in sitting volleyball, seven years
to a scene and quickly assess a patient and what needed to be done.
after starting, is “nuts” and realizes the impact his second chance had
Swearingen still uses critical thinking while playing sitting volleyball,
on everything he’s been able to accomplish.
which features similar rules to standing volleyball but uses a smaller
“Where I am now is just a fantastic spot with family and work,”
court and a shorter net and requires players to be seated at all times.
Swearingen said. “Sometimes I sit back and I can’t believe the cool
“What I really like [about Swearingen] is his higher thinking,”
stuff that’s on my wall. I’m really happy with what I’ve done. It’s scary
said Greg Walker, the U.S. national sitting volleyball head coach. “His
to think about what I would I have not accomplished had I not done
discipline and ability to process a lot of information. He’s smart, he’s
well that semester.”
able to hit smart shots without making errors.”
BY DANIEL PAULLING
Millsaps Magazine Winter 2017
31
{ALUMNI}
Raising money for charities while exploring the world Zip ties. Podcasts. A lot of nerve. These are the things you need if you plan to drive from the United Kingdom to Mongolia, as Owen Phillips, B.S. 2013, and Juan Fernandez, B.S. 2013, recently discovered. Although Phillips had learned about the Mongol Rally early in his college years, it wasn’t until this last summer that budgets and work schedules made it possible for the two former Millsaps roommates to buy a cheap car, apply for a handful of visas, and hit the road. The Mongol Rally is essentially a free-for-all. The only requirement from The Adventurists, the U.K.-based company that organizes this and similar events around the globe, is that teams raise £1,000 for charity, half of which goes to their sponsored charity, Cool Earth, and the other half to the team’s choice. Apart from setting the dates and stringing up a start and finish line, there is little to no help from the company throughout the rally. As the disclaimer on its website states, after warning of possible death and serious injury, “These are not holidays. These are adventures and so by their very nature extremely risky. You really are putting both your health and your life at risk.” However, language like this did not dissuade Fernandez
32
www.millsaps.edu
and Phillips as they set off on the 43-day journey. One of the pillars of this undertaking is not to prepare, to fly by the seat of your pants, and make it up as you go. The route is entirely up to whoever is in the driver’s seat, as long as you get to your next destination by dark. Each team is independently responsible for ensuring they have the proper visas, vaccinations, and insurance beforehand. And perhaps most important, they have to buy their vehicle. Not just any car or motorbike, mind you, but one that, as The Adventurists state, “could be swapped for a bag of crisps.” Phillips and Fernandez’ 2001 Vauxhall Corsa hit the mark. “It was the kind of car you would take to the grocery store,” Phillips says. “You wouldn’t look at it and think, ‘Sure, this will take me a quarter of the way around the world.’” Phillips and Fernandez were part of a convoy of approximately 20 people divided over five cars. While they weren’t an organized team, they tended to follow the same route, share meals, and assist each other when the cars inevitably broke down. This camaraderie has since extended into regular GroupMe messages and Skype sessions since the group made their way to Ulan-Ude, the capital city of the Russian Republic of Buryatia. While traveling as a group was a meaningful experience in the long run, it was not always the easiest undertaking to corral a bunch of twenty-somethings, friends of friends of one of Phillips’ co-workers. As the person in charge of gathering information about paperwork and setting some semblance of a route, Fernandez took away from the experience that sometimes it was O.K. to have little structure. He also learned that even in the deserts of Kazakhstan, “pretty much every road is on Google.” As designated “food czar,” Phillips went grocery shopping and made sure
{ALUMNI}
everyone had non-perishable food and coffee, since “when you’re with 20
bought non-potable water at a gas station and was thoughtfully corrected
people, you can’t really make a quick stop at a gas station… Initially, we
by the owner. Juan remembers stopping “in the middle of a highway in
tried to do this thing of every man for himself, but we were just wasting too
Azerbaijan, next to a restaurant, and the owner was a little reluctant to let
much time.” So Owen took the reins and had some fun along the way, using
us in at first. But when he found out we had a Russian speaker, he was very
his background in behavioral science to trick people into eating healthier.
welcoming, very happy to host us, brought out several courses of meals. It’s
“If you provide people an option between oranges and Oreos,” he chuckles,
the kind of hospitality you wouldn’t expect to be given to foreigners, espe-
“they’ll feel guilty if they don’t eat the oranges.”
cially Americans. We saw this over and over.”
Luckily, the group had very few mechanical problems on the road,
Recounting their trip, both Fernandez and Phillips insist that anyone
encountering only the periodic flat tire or overheated engine. However their
could make the journey if they really tried. “I think that was the reason for
first day on the road did prove challenging. Juan lost his international driv-
doing it,” Owen says, “to find out if we could do it. We wanted to know.
er’s license within hours of crossing the start line and Owen, who had never
Because it seemed kind of bizarre and strange… There’s not really anything
driven a car with a manual trans-
you can do to prepare. It’s okay to
mission and whose name was on
mess up. It’s okay to break down.
the insurance, immediately crashed
It’s okay not to know what you’re
the vehicle. “We had zero mechani-
doing.”
cal experience. We hadn’t even
So to future travelers, know
gotten out of the U.K. and I had
this: in terms of structure or guid-
already gotten into an accident!”
ance, “The organization itself is
In a similar turn of events, within
pretty much useless,” Juan warns,
a day’s drive of the finish line, the
but, “at the end of the rally you get
pair’s car broke down in such a way
a nice little sticker.”
that no one on the team could fix
Since returning in August,
it. Also it was raining… for the first
Phillips became a staff writer at
time in a month. When they got to
the online magazine The Outline.
the next village the mechanic, i.e.
After graduating from Millsaps, he
“a man with some tools who only
earned a master’s degree in public
had nine fingers,” patched them up
policy from Georgetown Univer-
enough to get to the next major city
sity and then worked at Behavioral
and eventually home.
Insights Team in New York, where
The real shocking aspects were not so much Phillips and Fernandez’ illiteracy when it came to fixing their car, but the more common culture shock and language barriers. Although
he used insights from the behavioral science literature to improve public services. Fernandez, who after graduation was a high school math and science
both had studied abroad during their time at Millsaps, neither could have
teacher at Meridian High and then at Terry High, has dusted off his pants
prepared for what they encountered on the road. Even what are considered
and begun graduate studies at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.
small errands in the U.S., like filling up for gas or stopping for food, proved to be memorable experiences. Owen recalls a time the group accidentally
Read more about the Mongol Rally and The Adventurists’ other trips at www.theadventurists.com. BY HANNAH SAULTERS, B.A. 2016
Millsaps Magazine Winter 2017
33
{ALUMNI}
Giving back through comedy and homes For many Westerners, “zebra crossing” might conjure images of a sweeping savannah dotted with wildlife and open air jeeps rolling slowly over rutted dirt roads. As romantic as that vignette might be, the term actually refers to something much more mundane: a crosswalk. “It’s not a safari!” Chad Songy, B.B.A. 2009, exclaims of his
dian, and a mature disposition.” But outside of everything he did on campus, Songy recalls his “McNair experience was my most valuable at Millsaps because it broadened my horizons. It’s the reason I fell in love with South Africa. It’s the reason I fell in love with a lot of different African cultures. That’s why I bring people back to Cape Town; it’s all kind of a way to give back in the way the McNair Fund gave to me.” Being a scholar athlete (as well as the son of a teacher), Songy has encountered many talented coaches and educators. He credits them with instilling in him the value of learning and sharing that education. Despite loathing fundraising (something Songy admits in a
latest venture into the world of non-profits and charitable business
YouTube video about his work), this desire to give back and to educate
known as Zebra Crossing Adventures. Rather, Songy’s leadership and
others colors most of his endeavors, professional and otherwise. He
teambuilding experience gets its name from the alternating black and
decided to work for PGC because “it is a way of life that teaches you
white stripes for pedestrian walks in South Africa, where the term
to be a better player, but also to be a better leader and teacher… PGC
is laden with cultural significance because, as Songy explains, these
made me the player I am and the person I am.” Similarly, his con-
crosswalks are where “people from different backgrounds cross paths,
nection to COMETRY stemmed from the ways in which stand-up
which is the exact thing that I’m doing.”
affected him. “I can use comedy to achieve good beyond myself,” he
After working a few unenlightening part-time jobs when in high school, Songy “made a clear and conscious decision never to
remembers thinking, “I don’t just want to go to drunk people in a bar and make them laugh.”
exchange work for money again.” So far, he has succeeded. Zebra
And he’s figured out a workaround to fundraising through Sus-
Crossing Adventures is the latest in an impressive line of innova-
tainable Giving Homes, which he recently expanded to Cape Town
tive projects Songy has developed in an effort to improve the world
after “some old fogies” in a local homeowners’ association banned
through leadership education. Since graduating from Millsaps with
Airbnb’s in his Austin, Texas, neighborhood. The house in Cape
a double-major in economics and business administration, Songy
Town will serve as home base for Zebra Crossing Adventures during
has taught basketball on five continents through PGC Basketball, a
his time there, but will also be listed on Airbnb. All of the profits from
respected athletics and leadership camp that he participated in as a
this property will stay within South Africa for local educational oppor-
high school student. In his spare time, he keeps busy by “taking an
tunities. Songy hopes to eventually use a small portion of the profits
idea and bringing a business to life. I like making it sustainable and
as a scholarship fund for Zebra Crossing Adventures, in order to pay
then giving it to somebody else to run so that it lives beyond me.” This
forward the same kind of opportunity the McNair Fund gave him.
is exactly what he did with COMETRY, an organization he co-created
Diversity is central to Songy’s vision of Zebra Crossing Adven-
that takes comedy and poetry into schools and conferences with the
tures, be it racial, socioeconomic, value set, thought, or cultural.
purpose of “edutaining” audiences with observational humor and
He selects people of all ages and backgrounds to participate in the
poetic storytelling. Songy also founded Sustainable Giving Homes,
leadership and cultural experience centered around personal growth.
a real-estate project in which he donates the profits from longterm
Although there is a charitable component to the program in that
and Airbnb rentals to education programs in Africa in Sierra Leone,
participants help teach and play basketball with local students, Songy
Kenya, and South Africa.
is quick to distinguish it from other mission trips, acknowledging the
Songy notes that the people and networks that Millsaps afforded
precedent of colonialism and white privilege in the region. It’s clear
him, particularly his time in South Africa as the recipient of a stipend
in his thoughtful and passionate description of the project that he
from the McNair Fund for Christian Missions (established by David
has tremendous respect for the culture that he’s introducing to the
McNair, Class of 1960), made a big impact on his life. After all, it was
participants. He strives to prevent them from returning home to tell
a talent show for Tri-Delta sorority at Millsaps that led to one of his
their campuses and communities that they “went and served little
first stand-up routines. Not only was he involved in a number of clubs
African children and taught basketball,” because his goal is not that
and organizations during his time on campus, Songy was (and contin-
they are serving Africa, but instead that they are learning from it. “We
ues to be) a gifted athlete.
don’t need to save Africa,” he remarks, “I think the continent of Africa
Dr. Brit Katz, vice president for student life and dean of students at Millsaps, still remembers a thrilling moment that Songy provided.
is our greatest untapped resource and I believe it can help the world.” The author and theologian Frederick Buechner defines vocation
“I watched through tense eyes as he sank a clutch shot with no time
as the point “where our greatest passion meets the world’s greatest
remaining to claim victory in the second round of the NCAA na-
need.” Chad Songy has found this point again and again, by sharing
tional championships during the 2007-2008 season,” he said. “Chad,
his talents and gifts with the world. Read more about Songy at www.
a record-breaking point guard, calmly drained the basket; and I was
chadsongy.com.
drained emotionally. Chad’s entire Millsaps career was notable: ter34
rific grades, many honors, varsity athletics awards, stand-up come-
www.millsaps.edu
BY HANNAH SAULTERS, B.S. 2016
{ALUMNI}
Millsaps Magazine Winter 2017
35
{ALUMNI}
36
www.millsaps.edu
{ALUMNI}
With a spirit of service empowering students It was at Millsaps College, Gusanita Roberson remembers, that she learned a life lesson that today guides both her career and her values. “The spirit of service stressed on campus and the spirit of giving
family situation. Gusanita has done quite a bit since she left Millsaps. It’s really wonderful.” Roberson also took inspiration from Dr. Jeanne Middleton-Hairston, B.A. 1971, then a professor of education, even though she didn’t have Middleton-Hairston as a teacher. Like Sallis, Middleton-Hairston remembers Roberson as a good student who was active on campus. “She was a presence on campus,” Roberson said of MiddletonHairston. “Just knowing that she had graduated from Millsaps gave me that extra push to graduate and get through challenges in general.” Roberson began her career with IBM as an administrative assis-
back really influenced me after graduation,” said Roberson, B.B.A.
tant in the Jackson office. “I looked at the big picture: This is IBM. It
1981 and M.B.A. 1998. “The one thing it taught me that has kept me
was growing, and you determined your path.”
grounded is to have confidence and to believe in myself, and to have the foundation of knowing who I am and what I value.” Roberson, sales eminence and social champion for IBM Global
Her job took her to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in the mid-2000s, where she spent three weeks in an advisory role for IBM’s Center of Excellence. IBM sent her back later to assist with leadership development,
Financing North America, is in her 35th year with the American
and she embarked on one of her early global projects, helping to
multinational technology company and corporate world citizen. The
charter a Toastmasters International club.
married mother of two grown sons has lived out her passion for ser-
In early 2016, she took part in an international pro bono con-
vice through many roles with IBM, most recently in Ghana, where she
sulting project through IBM’s Corporate Service Corps leadership
worked hands-on to help develop a nationwide mentoring network to
development program. Corporate Service Corps, she said, is inspired
encourage girls to stay in school.
by Peace Corps, and deploys global teams of IBM’s top talent to work
Her experiences, Roberson said, offer “an interesting insight into the leading-edge corporate citizenship practices of global enterprises. At a time when so many people are searching for a sense of profes-
with governments, nonprofit organizations, and others to help solve tough problems in developing economies. “My team’s assignment was a collaborative partnership with the
sional purpose, learning about corporate citizenship, that it even ex-
Peace Corps and First Lady Michelle Obama’s Let Girls Learn Initia-
ists, and how it can work, could provide a valuable perspective when
tive,” Roberson said. “I was deployed to Accra, Ghana, for 30 days
choosing a career or even a major.”
working with the Ministry of Gender Child Protection and the Girls
Roberson’s career with IBM began when the late Dr. Samuel Knox, professor and chair of the Department of Mathematics at Millsaps, recommended her for an internship. Knox wasn’t one of her
Education Unit of the Ministry of Education to develop a nationwide mentoring network to encourage girls to stay in school.” She will always treasure her experience in Ghana, especially the
professors, but “he was instrumental in me getting introduced to IBM,
time her team visited four Peace Corps schools. “I remember the
and here I am, many years later,” Roberson said. “It taught me a valu-
eagerness of the girls in terms of wanting to get an education, and
able lesson: You never know who is observing you from afar.”
realizing and recognizing the challenges and obstacles they face every
Roberson grew up in Jackson and attended Lanier High. “I was undecided on a major,” she said. She initially considered mathemat-
day, both culturally and economically.” At one of the schools, she told students she had two sons, but no
ics, “but after my first experience in freshman pre-calculus, I found I
daughters. “One of the girls said, ‘I’ll be your daughter.’ It was very lov-
needed a different path.”
ing and engaging.”
She was active on campus, serving as secretary of the Student Ex-
It was at Millsaps, Roberson said, that she learned to work as part
ecutive Board and holding membership in Sigma Lambda, a service
of a team, a skill she would use no matter where life took her. “I’ve
organization, and Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority.
seen so many similarities between Millsaps’ and IBM’s beliefs in di-
“The big thing I share with students now is that even though I was a business major at Millsaps, a liberal arts education gave me a strong foundation. There were so many required courses I had to
versity and community, and the belief in lifelong learning. There were always opportunities for me to learn within IBM.” At age 57, the metro Atlanta resident is busy in IBM’s Global
take outside of business—political science, history. In some business
Financing arm. “The role I’m in now is one of sales enablement –
programs, you don’t get that experience.”
making sure that our new sellers have the tools and skills they need to
Dr. Charles Sallis, emeritus professor of history who taught at Millsaps for 32 years and retired almost two decades ago, said he
be successful. “I really love what I’m doing now. When I was eligible to retire after
remembers Roberson as a good student. Sallis was faculty sponsor of
29 years, I said I’d retire at 30 years. That came and went,” Roberson
the Black Student Union, an organization Roberson joined.
said. “As long as I enjoy what I’m doing, I have no plan to retire—and
“Our campus student body was so small then,” Sallis said. “The classes were so small that you got to know the students as if it was a
2017 is year 36.” BY RUTH INGRAM CUMMINS
Millsaps Magazine Winter 2017
37
{ALUMNI}
Alumni join other notable alumni as award winners Three Millsaps College alumni received awards from the Mississippi Institute of Arts & Letters in 2016. Dr. Samuel L Jones, B.A. 1957 and a 2000 honorary degree recipient, earned recognition in the classical music composition category for his “Concerto for Violin and Orchestra.” The founding dean of the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University in Houston, Texas, Jones served as composer-in-residence with the Seattle Symphony Orchestra for 14 years. Taylor Kitchings, Class of 1973, a teacher at St. Andrew’s Episcopal School in Ridgeland, was honored for Yard War, a young adult novel published in 2015. A sequel entitled The Tidings Tree is scheduled for publication by Random House in 2017. Yard War is a Junior Library Guild Select and a Summer 2015 Okra Pick by the Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance. Dr. Joseph T. Reiff, B.A. 1976, professor of religion and chair of the Religion Department at Emory and Henry, was recognized for Born of Conviction: White
Methodists and Mississippi’s Closed Society, published by Oxford University Press. Established in 1980, the awards are presented in seven categories, including several that encompass books in fiction, nonfiction, photography, and poetry. Judges, from out of state, who are prominent in their field, select the winners. Past winners have included Millsaps alumni Ellen Gilchrist, Lewis Nordan, John Stone, Millsaps College emerita professor of English Dr. Suzanne Marrs, and honorary degree recipients Eudora Welty, Leontyne Price, and Natasha Trethewey.
Alumni Award recipients From left, Christopher Cheek, B.B.A. 1985 and M.B.A. 1988, 2016 Jim Livesay Service Award; Jeanne Middleton-Hairston, B.A. 1971, 2016 Distinguished Alumna; Amanda Cashman, B.A. 2002, 2016 Young Alumna; and Judy and Carl Menist, 2016 Jim Livesay Service Award.
38
www.millsaps.edu
{CLASS NOTES}
Class Notes
Check out Class Notes to find out who has celebrated a major milestone. We would like to encourage all alumni to send in their news items, large or small, personal or professional, to Nell Luter Floyd, Office of Communications, Millsaps College, 1701 North State Street, Jackson, MS 39210-0001. Phone: 601-974-1033 or 1-86-MILLSAPS (1-866 - 455-7277). Email: communications@ millsaps.edu. Please include your name, address, phone numbers, email address, graduation year and degree, and any news you want to share. Appropriate items include births, weddings, advanced degrees, awards, job promotions, etc. Photographs are also welcome. Photographs should be no less than 300 dpi. We reserve the right to not include a photo that doesn’t meet our standards. If you are aware of alumni who are not receiving the magazine, please send us their names and addresses.
1941
Geyer, who has taught in the English Department of the University of Houston and Rice
to students, particularly those seeking ordination in The United Methodist Church.
The late Gen. Louis H. Wilson Jr., B.A. 1941,
University’s School of Continuing Studies, received
26th commandant of the Marine Corps and a
two master’s degrees from the State University of
doctor of ministry degrees from Candler. Ordained
Medal of Honor recipient, is being honored by the
New York.
as an elder in The United Methodist Church, he
U.S. Navy with Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, DDG 126, that will bear his name.
Goodpaster earned both master of divinity and
served as a pastor and district superintendent in the Mississippi Conference. He was elected to the
and is expected to enter the Navy fleet in 2023. The
Dr. James R. McCormick , B.A. 1957, of Cumming, Ga., has published his sixth book, The Right Order of Things—A Christian Theology for the Rest of Us. He wrote the book in memory of
ship will be 509 feet long, have a beam length of 59
Dr. Robert E. Bergmark, emeritus professor of
North Carolina Conference in 2008. Goodpaster
feet and be capable of operating at speeds in excess
philosophy.
has accrued an impressive record of conference
DDG 126 will be constructed by Bath Iron Works, a division of General Dynamics in Maine,
of 30 knots. Wilson received the Medal of Honor for his actions during the Battle of Guam during World
1967-68
episcopacy in 2000 and assigned to serve the Alabama-West Florida Conference, where he served for eight years before moving to serve the Western
and general church leadership, contributing his pastoral and administrative talents to such institutions as the Council of Bishops, Methodist Health
War II. During the assault on Guam in July 1944,
Systems, and 14 boards of trustees. He was presi-
while commanding Company F, 2nd Battalion, 9th
dent of the Council of Bishops from 2010–2012.
Marines, Wilson, then a Marine Corps captain,
1975
earned the nation’s highest honor for heroism in combat when he and his company repelled and
Russell H. Beard,
destroyed a numerically superior enemy force.
B.A. 1975 and B.S.
Wilson was promoted to general July 1, 1975, when
1986, of Diamondhead,
he assumed the office of commandant of the Marine Corps. As commandant, Wilson repeat-
Millsaps alumni who held a reunion at Pickwick
edly stressed modernization of the post-Vietnam
Lake, a tourist destination at the intersection of
Marine Corps.
Mississippi, Tennessee, and Alabama, are front
1956 Bill Lampton, B.A. 1956, of Gainesville, Ga., saw his business, Championship Communications, recognized by the Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce as the Business of the Month in July 2016. The award recognizes businesses that make a difference in chamber development, outstanding customer service and outstanding community service.
1957 Nancy P. Geyer, B.A. 1957, of Houston, Texas, novelist and playwright, saw her play “The Damaged Heart,” selected as one of six plays for the 2016 New Play Reading Series of Queensbury Theatre in Houston. Geyer is the author of the novels, Flying South (Scribner) and Frailties (Little, Brown) and seven plays that have gained recognition.
retired Dec. 31, 2016 from federal service after 28 years. Upon receiving his master’s
row from left, Marilyn Hinton Hammond,
in geology from the
B.A. 1968; Floy Holloman, B.A. 1968; Penny
Sanders Varner, B.A. 1967; Lucy Cavett Cobbe, B.A. 1968; seated, Madolyn Monk Smith, B.A. 1968; Mel Maxwell Shain, B.A. 1968; Fru Payne Garrison, B.A. 1968; Polly Gatlin Bailey, B.M. 1968; Virginia Jones Whitley, B.A. 1968; Dorothy Greer Tampary, B.S. 1968; Liz Burdine Hyde, Class of 1968; and back row, Betsy Stone Walkup, B.A. 1968; Jean Nicholson Medley, B.A. 1968; and Carol Hederman Tatum, B.A. 1968.
University of Mississippi, he served 15 years as an oceanographer and supervisor with the Naval Oceanographic Office at Stennis Space Center. He then completed 13 years of service with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration as chief scientist and director of the National Coastal Data Development Center and retired as deputy director of NOAA’s Center for Coasts, Oceans, and Geophysics. He served as acting director of the NOAA
1970
RESTORE Science Program, which had the task
The Rev. Dr. Larry M. Goodpaster, B.A. 1970,
established by the British Petroleum Deepwater
of Atlanta, has joined Candler School of Theology
Horizon penalty funds. He also served as interim
at Emory University as the school’s bishop-in-
science coordinator for the Gulf Restoration Coun-
residence. As bishop-in-residence, Goodpaster will
cil, representing the nine government agencies
teach courses, preach and preside at chapel wor-
and five Gulf State recipients of the Oil Spill Trust
ship and ceremonial occasions, and offer counsel
Funds award.
of leading the NOAA research efforts and was
Millsaps Magazine Winter 2017
39
{CLASS NOTES}
1977
tions. He is responsible for development, improve-
ecutive compensation since 2002, and also serves
ment, and promotion of MRC’s brand and increas-
as the immediate past president of the Worldwide
Dwayne Self, B.S. 1977, of Canton, a certified
ing the utilization of MRC’s clinical services.
Employee Benefits Network, Dallas Chapter Steer-
registered nurse anesthetist at the University of
He supports all MRC business lines, manages
ing Committee.
Mississippi Medical Center, received the 2016
community relations, oversees strategic business
Daniel F. Vigness Federal Political Director of the
development, and develops customer loyalty.
Year Award from the American Association of
Boone spent 20 years with IBM Global Ser-
Nurse Anesthetists during the association’s Mid-
vices in consulting and project management. For
Year Assembly in Washington, D.C. The award
two years, he served as the president and CEO of
was established in 2001 to acknowledge the CRNA
the Community Foundation of Greater Jackson, a
who makes the greatest strides in advancing the
non-profit, grant-making organization serving the
association’s s federal healthcare agenda through
metro area. He then spent almost five years creat-
grassroots political activities as a federal political
ing and directing the Project Management Office
director.
for international retailer Hudson’s Bay Company.
2000
Self earned bachelor’s degrees in both nurse anesthesiology and nursing from the University of Mississippi Medical Center. In addition, he gradu-
Angela Booth Wingfield , M.D., B.S.
ated with an emergency medical technician license
and B.A. 1994, of Gulfport,
from Hinds Community College.
owner of The Dermatology Clinic, PLLC in Gulfport,
1991
was the unanimous choice of the University of Mis-
Dr. Boyce Clark , B.S. 1991, of Baton Rouge,
sissippi Medical Center
La., has established Lubricity Labs, LLC as an entrepreneurial endeavor, using his background in science to create a line of hair care products that block the frizzing effects of humidity without causing damage to the hair. Lubricity Labs created the two-step Penetrate/Encapsulate treatment. In 1997, Clark earned a doctorate from Louisi-
Department of Dermatology residents as the recipient of the Affiliate Faculty Teaching Award for 2015-2016. Wingfield completed the Mississippi State Medical Association’s nine-month Physician Leadership Academy in June 2016.
istry and hydrogeology and was a research intern
1995
at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National
Joe Donovan, M.B.A. 1995, is division director of
Laboratory. He worked as a consultant to the
the Entrepreneur Center of the Mississippi Devel-
energy industry through the international consult-
opment Authority. He is responsible for coordinat-
ing firm ARCADIS that provided geochemical and
ing entrepreneurial development in Mississippi.
ana State University where he studied biogeochem-
geophysical consulting services around the world for clients such as ExxonMobil, Chevron, Huntsman, Pacific Gas and Electric, BASF, and many
1996 Madison, Ind., an associate
non-invasively detecting organic pollutants in the
professor of sociology at Hanover
subsurface and became an international expert on
College, has a story published
this technology. This work took him around the
in Ashland Creek Press, an an-
world on projects in Australia, Canada, Central
thology of short fiction, Among
America, South America, and to the Arctic Circle.
1994 1994, of Jackson, has joined the staff of Methodist Rehabilitation Center in Jackson as vice president of business development and community rela-
40
www.millsaps.edu
Animals 2: The Lives of Animals and Humans in Contemporary Short Fiction.
Doug Boone, M.B.A.
their families have met each year for the last five years for vacations that they call “Togetherness Trips.” The group, which has celebrated weddings and the birth of children, most recently met in Dahlonega, Ga. Pictured in the group picture are front row from left, Rachel Falgout Lokitz, B.S. 2002; Robert Lokitz; Leah Lokitz; Molly Ewing;
Akram Al-Turk , B.S. 2003; Darby Paulk; Lauren Paulk; Leif Mylroie, B.S. 2006; Lalita Mylroie, back row, Brad Lokitz, B.S. 2002; Maggie Kueven; John Kueven, B.B.A. 2005; Chance Kueven; Brad Paulk , B.S. 2004; Anna Paulk; Prasad Vasamsetti, B.S. 2001; Erik Mylroie, B.S. 2005; Robika Modak Mylroie, B.A. 2003; Sumon Bhowmick , B.S. 2002; Asher Bhowmick; Amber Bhowmick; and Arjen Bhowmick.
2006 Robyn Ryle, B.A. 1996, of
others. Clark developed a geophysical method for
Some members of the Classes of 2001-2006 and
Thomas K. Rinaldi, B.S. 2006, of Naples, Fla., a trial lawyer with Bond, Schoeneck & King PLLC, has been recognized in the 2016 Florida Super
Lawyers Rising Stars list. These attorneys were selected by their peers from
1999
among the top up-and-
Misty Leon Bernknopf, B.A. 1999, of Dallas, was recently named partner by the Wilkins Finston Friedman Law Group. She has practiced law in the area of employee benefits and ex-
coming lawyers, defined as 40 years of age and younger, or in the practice of law for less than 10 years. Rinaldi concentrates his practice on general business and commercial litigation involving contract disputes, business torts, real estate disputes, and creditor’s rights. He has also handled land-
{CLASS NOTES}
Dougherty and Gregory joined a rotational pro-
lord-tenant, employment, and personal injury liti-
Mississippi, for whom she has worked for six years,
gation and serves individuals who have complaints
and Stevenson is a senior associate with Eli Lilly
gram within the company where each spends time
issued against their professional licenses.
and Company.
in various areas of the company. Gregory worked
2007
2011
Chris Spear, B.A. 2007, and his wife, Kate, wel-
for six months in the North American headquarters in Raleigh, N.C., then spent six months in the
comed their daughter Louisa June Spear on June
Elizabeth “Liz” Lancaster, B.A.
23, 2016. Chris and Kate both work in real estate
2011, married
with Coldwell Banker Alfonso Realty in Gulfport.
Andrew McIntyre on Jan. 7, 2017 at
2008
Galloway United
Kyle Doherty, B.A. 2008, graduated magna cum laude from the University of Houston Law Center.
in Jackson. The
He is now an associate in the Global Projects group
included Dar-
Methodist Church
company headquarters in Zurich, Switzerland, and most recently worked in the company’s local operation in Lima, Peru. At the end of the rotations, Gregory will rejoin the North American organization. Dougherty will work in Shanghai, China starting in April.
2015 Carpenter Stevens, B.A,
wedding party
than is an admission
rington Lancaster Ludlam, B.S. 2009; Anna Sweat Day, B.S. 2009; Kathleen Morrison Mitchell, B.A. 2010; Laura Jackson, B.S. 2011; Katherine Nicholas Fredericks, B.S. 2011; Kristin Foss, B.S. 2011; Virginia Schreiber, B.A. 2011; and Katie Sorey, B.A. 2011. Ben Tomlinson, B.A. 2006, was the pianist
counselor at Millsaps.
for the ceremony. The couple resides in Oxford,
Skye Williams, B.S. 2016, and Taylor Winslow,
where Liz is the marketing manager for The Inn at
B.B.A. 2015
Ole Miss, and Andrew is a ceramic artist and the
were members
operations manager for the ceramics department
of the wedding
at Baker Botts LLP, an international law firm based in Houston, Texas.
Jonathan Webb, B.A.2008, of Jackson, and his wife Zita welcomed a daughter, Wren Zita Webb, on May 10, 2016. Jona-
2009 Catherine Gray, B.A. 2009, and Lloyd Gray, B.S. 2010, welcomed a son,
2015, married Charles Marsalis on June 18, 2016 at Saint John’s Episcopal Church in Pascagoula.
at the University of Mississippi.
2012
Guider Quinn Gray,
Laura Domingue Rafferty, B.B.A. 2012, of La-
on June 15, 2016.
fayette, La., opened a Pure Barre studio in August
party. Carpenter is a student at Mississippi College School of Law, and Charles works at Cosmich, Simmons, & Brown law firm in Jackson.
2015 in her hometown of Lafayette, La.
2010
Victoria Gorham, B.A. 2012, the first student to Sarah Lloyd Allred, B.A. 2010, married Peter Edwin Stevenson on Oct. 17, 2015 at Northminster Baptist Church in Jackson. The wedding party
minor in African studies at Millsaps College, is the recipient of a Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad grant. Gorham will use the award to conduct fieldwork for her dissertation in Tanzania for nine months beginning in June. Gorham is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Political Science at the University of Florida.
2013 Caitlyn Dougherty, B.B.A. 2013 and M.Acc
included Mirel
2014, and Kendall Gregory, B.B.A. 2013 and
Brackin Gill,
M.Acc.2014, are employed by ABB, a manufactur-
B.A. 2010, and
ing conglomerate that builds transformers and
Julia Raye Jesuit , B.B.A. 2010.
power substations as well as industrial automation products. The Zurich-based company operates
Sarah is a senior policy adviser for domestic and
in 100 countries around the world and has about
global health care for Sen. Roger Wicker from
135,000 employees.
Millsaps Magazine Winter 2017
41
{IN MEMORIAM}
{IN MEMORIAM}
In Memoriam Millsaps College remembers those in our alumni family and College community who have died. These In Memoriam listings reflect those received from April 1, 2016 to January 1, 2017.
Samuel Richard “Dick” Leatherman, Class
Norman Burke Gillis Jr., Class of 1945, of Mc-
John Daniel Potter Sr., Class of 1947, of Wesla-
of 1948, of Memphis, died on Feb. 23, 2016. He
Comb, died Sept. 15, 2016. He was an attorney as
co, Texas, died Dec. 12, 2015. He was a veteran of
attended Millsaps before enrolling in the Navy and
well as a developer of commercial properties and
the U.S. Marines and served in World War II and
later graduated from the University of Virginia. He
a number of oil and gas fields. Trained as a Navy
the Korean War. For much of his career, he was a
began his career at First Tennessee Bank, where
pilot, he was later assigned as a military escort to
college professor, teaching business and finance at
he later served as a director of the board, before
delegates attending the first session of the United
Simpson College, Indiana University, North Texas
becoming president of the family’s Memphis Furni-
Nations in New York. He loved flying modern and
State University, Northwest Missouri State Univer-
ture Manufacturing Co. Throughout his life, he was
vintage planes and was the first pilot to land at
sity, and St. Mary’s University.
a cotton farmer in the northern Mississippi Delta.
Moisant Air Field in New Orleans.
Elizabeth Tip Stuart Jacob, Class of 1940, of
George T. Locke, Class of 1945, of Rapid City,
hurst, died Dec. 5, 2016. As a student at Millsaps,
Meridian, died Oct. 4, 2016. She attended the Uni-
Kansas, died Feb. 18, 2016. He participated in the
she met the love of her life, Lamar Puryear Jr.
versity of Mississippi and majored in music. She
V-12 Navy College Training Program at Millsaps.
They married on March 13, 1947, and settled in
was an integral part of her husband’s professional
After his Navy service, he earned a bachelor’s de-
Hazlehurst in 1952, where he practiced medicine.
photography business, which took them all over
gree in mechanical engineering from the Universi-
She was a stay-at-home mother, and together they
central Mississippi taking photos of high school
ty of Kansas at Lawrence and was employed by the
reared three children.
seniors and many weddings.
U.S. Geological Survey, the Kansas State Corpora-
Julia Goodman Puryear, B.A. 1947, of Hazle-
tion, and Black Hills Power and Light.
Patricia Eager Graham Downs, B.A. 1941, of
She was a devoted member of the Hazlehurst United Methodist Church, where she taught Sunday School for a number of years, and served
Missoula, Mont., died June 16, 2016. She taught a
Grace Brownell Slay, B.A. 1945, of Ridgeland,
on the Church Council and other committees,
Sunday school class, a women’s Bible class, and a
died April 30, 2016. She earned a bachelor’s in edu-
including Outreach and Pastor Parish. She served
couples Bible study at First Presbyterian Church in
cation and a minor in music from Millsaps.
on the Hazlehurst Youth Center Board, the Y-Teen
Jackson, and later a women’s Bible study at First
State Board, and was a Girl Scout leader. The two
Presbyterian Church in Roanoke, Va., and then at
Charles E. Carmichael, B.S. 1947, of Jackson,
most important things in her life were her church
Missoula’s First Presbyterian Church.
died July 24, 2016. He continued his education
and her family.
at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago for
Margaret Williams Maxwell, B.S. 1942, of
two years. Upon his return to Jackson, he began
Winston Douglas Sewell, Class of 1947, of
Ridgeland, died April 29, 2016. She began her
his 45-year career in advertising, marketing, and
Phoenix, Ariz., died April 13, 2016. He entered the
career as a draftsman for an engineering firm in
public relations with a firm that’s now GodwinG-
U.S. Navy in 1943 and attended Millsaps College
the petroleum industry. She attended night school
roup. He was a partner in the agency and served
while in the Navy. He then attended Oklahoma
to study geology and eventually moved to Mobile,
as its president from 1979 until his retirement in
University. After a career in radio/television in
Ala., where she continued her career as a geologi-
1989. After retiring, he formed the not-for-profit,
Oklahoma City, Okla., Amarillo, Texas, and Lub-
cal draftsman. In 1945, she married and relocated
GodwinGroup Communications Resource, where
bock, Texas, he returned to Phoenix in 1970 and
to Baltimore. After five years in Baltimore, she
he volunteered his time and experience.
entered private business.
returned to Jackson, and continued her career in the petroleum industry until her retirement in 1986.
Eleanor Johnson Corban, B.A. 1947, of Fay-
Joe Jordan Powell Jr., B.S. 1949, of Jackson,
ette, died April 3, 2016.
died June 18, 2016. He worked for Mississippi
Franklin Wilson Ray, B.A. 1944, of Itta Bena,
Valley Gas after a stint at Keesler Air Force Base
died Aug. 22, 2016. He earned a divinity degree
Betty Conner Currey, B.A. 1947, of Montgom-
where he taught electronics and radar. He worked
from Emory University. He served a total of 67
ery, Ala., died April 19. She served as secretary
in Greenwood for Mississippi Valley Gas and then
years in Mississippi churches in Duck Hill, Becker,
of Capitol Street United Methodist Church in
in Jackson at Mississippi Valley Gas’s main office
Belmont, Duncan, Tchula, Lake Cormorant, Ben-
Jackson until she married the Rev. James Conner
as an engineer and director of operations.
oit, Charleston, Lula, Itta Bena, Sidon, Schlater,
and became a pastor’s wife and mother of four
and Moorhead-Sunflower.
children.
Robert Warren Walker, B.A. 1949, of Meridian, died March 14, 2016. He was a veteran of
42
www.millsaps.edu
{IN MEMORIAM}
the United States Army Air Corps serving during
place volunteers into service projects all over the
Joe E. Majure, Class of 1950, of Forest, died Dec.
World War II. He retired after more than 30 years
world. During this time he also served as one of the
21, 2016. He had a successful insurance business
of service to Delta Air Lines, after which he worked
Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party “replace-
for many years and was active in the Rotary Club.
for Corrigan Travel Agency. He was a longtime
ment” delegates to the 1968 Democratic National
member of Poplar Springs Drive United Method-
Convention. After his house was bombed by the
Faye G. Tucker, B.B.A.1950, of Brandon, died
ist Church, the Meridian Community Chorus, the
Klan for his efforts on behalf of the civil rights
Sept. 29, 2016. She and her husband owned a
Symphony Chorus, and the Barbershop Group,
movement, Kochtitzky moved his family and his
successful accounting business together and were
and participated in numerous Meridian Little
organization to Baltimore and then Washington,
married for 66 years before her death.
Theatre productions.
D.C. In D.C. he founded an organization named Alternatives to highlight the over-commercialization
Doris G. Heath, Class of 1951, of Starkville, died
Dan Spearman Hyde, Class of 1950, of Ridge-
of holidays and celebrations. He and his family
Dec. 10, 2016.
land, died May 19, 2016. He graduated from the
returned to Jackson in the mid-1970s where he
University of Mississippi with a bachelor’s of
established a series of non-profit organizations
Kathryn Runge Reaves, Class of 1951, of Tuc-
business administration. He enlisted in the United
aimed at improving the quality of life in Missis-
son, Ariz., died Oct. 6, 2016. She graduated from
States Air Force and served for three years during
sippi and throughout the country.
the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. She worked
the Korean War. He worked as a certified public accountant in private practice.
William “Bill” Jones Jr., B.A. 1950, of Jackson,
for several years in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg
Annette DeKay LeBlanc, Class of 1950, of Flo-
school system, and was later employed with Home
wood, died on April 17, 2016. She was the mother
Insurance Company.
of three children.
died May 19, 2016. He earned a master’s degree in English from the University of Mississippi. He worked at the University of Mississippi, Masonite/
Rhodes Scholar
Hood Industries, the Mississippi Manufacturers
Hugh Gaston Hall, B.A. 1952 and honorary degree
Association, and Deposit Guaranty Bank, and
recipient in 2009, of Kenilworth, England, died Nov. 29,
served on the boards of the Mississippi Institutions
2016. After graduating from Millsaps, he spent a year as a
of Higher Learning and Education Services Foun-
Fulbright scholar in France at the Universities of Paris and
dation. He was instrumental in bringing the Rus-
Toulouse. As a Rhodes Scholar, he studied from 1953 until
sian, French, Spanish, and German exhibitions to
1955 at Oxford University at St John’s College, one of the
the Mississippi Arts Pavilion in Jackson.
semi-independent colleges that compose Oxford, and read modern languages (French and Italian).
William Burwell Jones, B.A. 1950, of George-
He recalled he was “constantly reminded of how igno-
town, Texas, died July 6, 2016. He earned a
rant I still was and my curiosity about many things was
bachelor of divinity degree from Emory University.
stimulated: from the mind/brain problem through a wide
He and his wife traveled to Santiago, Chile, where
spectrum of historical and literary perspectives down to how
they served five years as Methodist missionaries.
to write the next sentence in English or French.”
When they returned to the United States, Jones
Hall received B.A. and M.A. degrees in French and
supported his family by preaching in small Meth-
Italian from Oxford and a doctorate from Yale University. A poet, translator and leading author-
odist churches while he worked on his Ph.D. as a
ity on the French playwright Moliere, Hall was emeritus professor at the University of Warwick,
Rockefeller Scholar at Vanderbilt University. After
England and had held visiting appointments at numerous universities. He wrote, translated, or
receiving his doctorate, he worked at Southwestern
edited 26 books and contributed to some 40 other books and to 60 periodicals. Hall’s research on
University in Georgetown, Texas, where he had
Shakespeare was featured in the 2015 Rhodes Scholar magazine. He served as scholar-in-residence
many roles, including Lucy King Brown Chair of
at Millsaps in 2015 and during that time read from his poetry and interacted with students. “When
the Department of History and Government, ad-
Gaston came as a frequent guest to a course on ‘Renaissance Villains,’ he enlivened our discussions
ministrative vice president, provost, and executive
with his own recent discoveries, making scholarship accessible for undergraduates by illuminating
vice president.
parallels between the last words of Dido in Virgil’s Aeneid and Hamlet’s ‘to be, or not to be’ soliloquy or between Aeneas’s wooing of Dido by telling her of the fall of Troy and Othello’s wooing of Desde-
Robert Boone “Bob” Kochtitzky, Class of
mona by telling her the tale of his own sufferings,” said Dr. Anne C. MacMaster, associate profes-
1950, of Okeechobee, Fla., died May 5, 2016. He
sor of English at Millsaps. “Gaston paralleled the relation between Virgil and Shakespeare to one
graduated from Mississippi State University with
between two composers. Students loved the vitality and range of his intellect, as well as his warmth,
a business degree and joined the Air Force during
personal charm, and kindness to them.”
the Korean War. Upon completing his military ser-
At Hall’s memorial service on Dec. 8, 2016, his daughter Cordelia Hall ended her eulogy with
vice, he entered seminary at Southern Methodist
these words: “He was not diminished by the end of his life. He was clear that happiness was a moral
University and received a master’s of theological
choice, and he had a real talent for enjoying the life he had. He remained triumphantly himself,
study. Returning to Jackson during the height of
only doing what he chose to and delighted by everything he did. Above all, he remained delighted
the civil rights struggle, he started an organization
with his good fortune in marrying my mother.”
called LAOS or Laymen’s Overseas Services to help
Millsaps Magazine Winter 2017
43
{IN MEMORIAM}
Frances Patterson Walton, B.A. 1951, of Jackson,
David McFarland, Class of 1953, died Oct. 30,
Eugene Covington Holmes, A.B. 1955, of
died Sept. 30, 2016. She transferred from Agnes
2016. He received a Ph.D. in economics from
Columbia, S.C., died Aug. 17, 2016. He received his
Scott College to graduate from Millsaps College as
Vanderbilt University, served as a lieutenant in the
master of divinity at Candler School of Theology,
a music major, doing so early in order to marry O.B.
U.S. Navy, and was a professor at Princeton Univer-
Emory University, in 1957. He served as associate
“Billy” Walton, the love of her life. She served as
sity before joining the faculty at the University of
pastor or pastor at numerous United Method-
president of the Junior League of Jackson and the
North Carolina in 1964 where he served for 40 years.
ist churches in Georgia and in Mississippi. The
Symphony League, and for more than 30 years was
current United Methodist hymnal’s liturgy was
a member of the Explorers Women’s Bible Study
Edna Khayat Boone, B.A. 1954, of Ocean Springs,
written and developed with Holmes’ leadership.
leadership. She was a lifelong member of Galloway
died July 17, 2016. She earned a master’s degree in
He also served as a member of numerous com-
Memorial United Methodist Church. She was hon-
adult education from the University of Southern
mittees that were part of the Southern Carolina
ored at the Goodwill Volunteer Salute and received
Mississippi. She dedicated her life to community
Conference.
the Junior League Sustainer of the Year award.
service, education, and social justice. In her early career she was a school teacher, and later, the
Dr. John Douglas Stringer, B.S. 1955, of
Col. Joe F. Blakeney, B.A. 1952, of Rancho Ber-
director of the Idlewild YWCA in Jackson. From
Gulfport, died Oct. 24, 2016. He served in the U.S.
nardo, Calif., died April 1, 2016. He graduated with
1970-1980 she worked together with her husband at
Merchant Marines to save money for college until
a master’s degree in hospital administration from
LAOS, an ecumenical learning service organization
being called to serve his country in the U.S. Army.
St. Louis University in 1954 and then joined the
that provided mission opportunities for lay people
He earned his dental degree from the University of
United States Air Force Medical Service Corps as a
throughout the world. In 1985, she became the di-
Tennessee, and began his general dental practice
2nd Lieutenant. His career as a hospital adminis-
rector of The New Horizons Program for Displaced
in Long Beach, in 1959. In 1969, he went back to
trator began in Louisiana and took him to clinics
Homemakers on the Jefferson Davis Campus of the
specialize in orthodontics at St. Louis University.
and hospitals all over the world, from Crete to the
Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, where
He practiced as an orthodontist in Gulfport and
Strategic Air Command Headquarters in Omaha,
she worked until her retirement in 1999.
was a healthcare provider for 40 years.
Neb., and Office of the Surgeon General of the U.S. Air Force in Washington D.C. In 1976, he became
Louie Connard Short , Class of 1954, of Jack-
Daphna Willoughby Hummer, Class of 1956,
the administrator of Europe’s largest Air Force
son, died Aug. 3, 2016. He received his doctor of
of Highlands Ranch, Colo., died Aug. 14, 2016.
hospital located in Wiesbaden, Germany. While in
dental sciences degree from Loyola Dental School
She transferred from Millsaps to the University of
Wiesbaden, he set up the “Freedom Wing” to receive
and then joined the United States Navy during
Southern Mississippi. She traveled the world, from
hostages from Iran. In 1980, he returned to the U.S.
the Korean War, where he rose to the rank of 1st
Japan and Korea to Europe and the Middle East,
and was sent to Norton Air Force Base in San Ber-
lieutenant. He practiced dentistry in Jackson for
witnessing many important moments in history.
nardino, California, to lead a team that inspected
40 years and was the first endodontic specialist
She volunteered countless hours for the American
clinics and hospitals all over the world. He retired
in Mississippi. He was an avid outdoorsman and
Red Cross and other charities. A textile artist, she
from the USAF with 30 years of service and became
was passionate about hunting and fishing, and he
specialized in Hawaiian quilting.
the director of the Mississippi State Hospital.
raised, bred, and showed registered quarter horses and cattle at his farm.
Donie Sykes Green, Class of 1952, of Knoxville,
Elizabeth Barfield “Betty” Walters, Class of 1956, of Franklin, Ind., died Dec. 19, 2016. She was
Tenn., died Sept. 23, 2016. She retired from Ten-
Robert Thomas Woodard , B.A. 1954, of
the spouse of retired Elder Rev. Summer Lewis
nessee Valley Authority, where she worked as an
Starkville, died March 12, 2016. He was an or-
Walters Jr.
executive assistant in the general counsel’s office.
dained United Methodist minister, who earned his master of divinity and his doctorate of ministry at
Carl C. Welch, Class of 1956, of Corinth, died
Laura Allen Hudspeth, B.A. 1952, of Ridge-
Candler School of Divinity at Emory University.
April 3, 2016. He began his career as a newspaper
land, died Aug. 13, 2016. She and her husband
He served for 39 years in churches across the North
reporter, worked in radio, and served in the U.S.
lived many years in Rolling Fork before moving to
Mississippi Conference and later the consolidated
Army before becoming a family physician. He grad-
Jackson.
Mississippi Conference.
uated from the University of Arkansas for Medical
Fred M. Walker, B.B.A 1950, of Jackson, died
Kay Fort Child, B.A. 1955, of Jackson, died April
cal and clinical pathology. He became director of
Oct. 17, 2016. He served in the United States Ma-
4, 2016. She was one of nine founders of New Stage
laboratories at Magnolia Regional Health Center
rines during World War II. He retired after working
Theatre in Jackson, where she remained a lifetime
and the Tishomingo County Hospital in Iuka. In
as executive secretary of the Public Employees
member of the board. She initially enrolled at
1975, Welch began his private practice in family
Retirement System of Mississippi. He spent more
the University of Mississippi, but transferred
medicine and served the community of North Mis-
than 46 years working to help develop and upgrade
to Millsaps to pursue acting under Lance Goss,
sissippi until 2015, and continued to work as the
the Mississippi retirement programs and received
emeritus professor of speech and theatre. After
medical director for five local programs.
many honors and awards during his career.
graduating, she continued her study of drama at
Sciences and completed a residency in anatomi-
the theatre school of Northwestern University.
Mitt Roby, Class of 1956, of Flowood, died Sept.
Glenna C. James, Class of 1953, of Broomfield,
After raising her children, she re-enrolled at Ole
22, 2016. He served in the U.S. Air Force during the
Colo., died Dec. 21, 2016.
Miss to study painting in graduate school and
Vietnam War and was awarded a Bronze Star. After
completed an M.F.A. there.
returning home, he practiced medicine in Florida,
44
www.millsaps.edu
{IN MEMORIAM}
Georgia, and North Carolina, before moving to
her majesty’s visit to Canada in 1974. She served
Calliope Prekezes, B.A. 1959, of Skokie, Ill., died
Natchez, where he was head of the emergency
for ten years as a member of the Ontario Munici-
Oct. 2, 2016. She was a wife, mother, and grand-
room at Jeff Davis Memorial Hospital. He then
pal Board, a voluntary and binding alternative to
mother.
became a family physician in Natchez.
formal legal action, which hears and arbitrates disputes involving municipalities. In 2003, Millar
Frank Davis Allen Jr., Class of 1960, of Wash-
Max Harold McDaniel, B.S. 1957, of Jackson,
returned to public service as an elected member of
ington, D.C., died Aug. 11, 2016. He graduated
died April 19, 2016. He received his master’s in
the Kitchener-Waterloo Regional Council.
from Vanderbilt Law School and was admitted to
psychology from the University of Mississippi and
the bar in Washington, D.C. He spent more than
his Ph.D. in industrial psychology from Purdue
Marjorie May Watson, Class of 1958, of Whan-
20 years as an attorney in the Civil Rights Division
University. He worked for Bell Aerosystems in
garei, Northland, New Zealand, died July 9, 2016.
of the U.S. Department of Justice, with his work
Buffalo, N.Y. and then as a psychology professor
She was a wife and mother.
spanning voting rights and jury discrimination
at University of Georgia and the University of
cases, school desegregation, and criminal prosecu-
Southern Mississippi. He was a founding partner
Rex Alman Jr., B.A. 1959, of Marion, died March
tions. He staffed the division’s New Orleans office
of Morris & McDaniel Management Consultants
27, 2016. He earned a master’s degree from Missis-
and later worked on federal appeals matters. In the
in Jackson.
sippi State University and attended the University
late 1980s, Allen left the Division for the Pension
of North Carolina. He was an ordained Method-
Benefit Guaranty Corporation. Upon retiring, he
Hal D. Miller Jr., B.A.1957, of Madison, died
ist minister and preached at churches ranging in
was a sole practitioner on Capitol Hill, specializing
August 24, 2016. He graduated from the University
membership from 16 up to 100, serving up to five
in estate planning and administration.
of Mississippi Law School and became the first as-
small churches at one time. Alman also worked for
sociate hired at Butler, Snow, O’Mara, Stevens and
the Welfare Department, the Department of Voca-
Charles “Charlie” Ray Brackett , Class of
Cannada. In 1986, he became the first elected chair
tional Rehabilitation, and Weems Mental Health
1960, of Jackson, died Aug. 11, 2016. His most
of the firm. His passion for nurturing family busi-
Center as a marriage and family counselor.
important accomplishments included his family,
nesses, which grew from his dedication to his own
friendships, and taking his family on adventures
family’s business, Miller Transporters, and his pas-
Jacquelyn Louise Felder Butler, B.S. 1959,
sion for bringing alternative dispute resolution to
died Sept. 15, 2016. She graduated early from high
fruition in Mississippi, led him to teach. He was an
school at age 16 and was said to be the first woman
Hubert Lacy Causey, B.A. 1960, of Canyon
adjunct professor at the Else School of Management
to take both biology and chemistry at Southwest
Lake, Calif., died Nov. 11, 2016. He served for 20
at Millsaps and served as an adjunct professor and
Mississippi Junior College, which she attended
years in the U.S. Marine Corps, including two tours
lawyer in residence at Mississippi College School of
before Millsaps.
of Vietnam. He retired with numerous awards and
Law. He served as president of numerous professional organizations and received numerous awards.
around the world.
medals, including the Bronze Star. He then worked
Gay Piper Orr Gwinner, B.A. 1959, of Atlanta,
for Bianchi International in Temecula, Calif.
died July 30, 2016. She earned a master’s degree
Clovis Gene Butts, Class of 1958, of Dickson,
from Georgia State University’s School of Urban
Albert Ellis Davis Jr., B.A. 1960, of Madison,
Tenn., died Jan. 14, 2016. He was a graduate of
Studies and was chosen to participate in Jimmy
died Oct. 18, 2016. He had a 35-year career with
Delta State University and Candler School of
Carter’s Presidential Management Intern Program.
The Coca-Cola Company. He was director of mar-
Theology at Emory University. He was a veteran
Recruited by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Sa-
keting in Tokyo, Japan, vice president of marketing
of the United States Marine Corps, serving during
vannah District, she worked there until retirement.
for the Coca-Cola Company, and had leadership
the Korean War. He was a pastor for 38 years in the
roles in the development of The First World of
Fred Alexander Jabour Jr., B.A. 1959, of
Coke in Atlanta, the Martin Luther King Center in
Clinton, died Oct, 21, 2016. He earned a master’s
Atlanta, the Torch Run of the Barcelona Olympics
Elizabeth “Betty” Garrison Graham, B.S.
degree at Mississippi State University. He taught
in 1992, and the Everything Coke exhibits in
1958, of Columbus, Ga., died May 6, 2016. She met
physics, chemistry, and math at Murrah High
Las Vegas and New York City.
her husband Bill as he escorted her in the Millsaps
School in Jackson before becoming an agent with
Homecoming Court. She taught biology at Central
Allstate, where he worked for 35 years.
Methodist Church in north Mississippi.
High School in Jackson and later at Isidore New-
Aldine Myra Tucker Gordon, Class of 1960, of Madison, died Aug. 13, 2016. She graduated
Gadi E. Lum Jr., Class of 1959, of Lakeland,
from the University of Southern Mississippi with
Tenn., died Oct. 24, 2016. He had a successful ca-
a degree in speech and language pathology, and
Claudette Hall Millar, B.A. 1958, died Feb. 10,
reer in medical sales, and he and his wife enjoyed
later earned a master’s degree in special education
2016. In 1973, she was elected the first mayor of
many years of travel together.
from Mississippi State University. She worked as
man School in New Orleans.
the new city of Cambridge, Ontario, and, except
a speech pathologist for the Mississippi Cerebral
for one term, served as mayor until 1988. Among
Barbara Byrd Magoun, Class of 1959, of Clin-
Palsy Hospital in Jackson, directed the Jackson
her many achievements as mayor was bringing to
ton, died April 13, 2016. She graduated from Loui-
Speech and Hearing Clinic, and continued her ca-
Cambridge the first Toyota plant in Canada and
siana State University with a bachelor’s degree in
reer in the Jackson public schools and the CARES
hiring of women in areas that had been restricted
English. She taught English and Latin at Clinton
Center. She was a lifelong member of Christ
to men. She received the Queen of England on
High School.
United Methodist Church.
Millsaps Magazine Winter 2017
45
{IN MEMORIAM}
Clyde David Auld, Class of 1961, of Natchez,
Albert Earl Elmore, B.A. 1962, of Athens, Ala.,
Church (Disciples of Christ). He served the Na-
died May 18, 2016. He had a career in the oil and
died Nov. 3, 2016. He was a 1964 Woodrow Wilson
tional and World Council of Churches, and was
gas industry at Scarborough Pump & Supply and
Fellow, received his Ph. D. from Vanderbilt Univer-
active in civil rights work for much of his life. He
as a regional sales director in the W.C. Norris divi-
sity in 1968, and law degree from the University of
was active with what is now the Oklahoma Center
sion of Dover Corp.
Mississippi Law School in 1979. He was a retired
for Community and Justice and the Tulsa Inter-
professor, lawyer, and author of a book that shed
faith Alliance.
Ellen Esses, B.A. 1961, of Niceville, Fla., died
fresh light on Abraham Lincoln’s most famous ad-
May 20, 2016. She taught school in Mississippi in
dress. Elmore taught English and drama at Athens
Patricia M. Derian, Class of 1964, of Chapel
Biloxi and in Texas in LaPort.
State University from 1987 to 2013, writing plays on
Hill, N.C., died Nov. 11, 2016. Derian helped found
topics from songwriter Stephen Foster to the court-
the Democratic Party of the State of Mississippi,
Patsy H. Lum, Class of 1961, of Lakeland, Tenn.,
martial of Civil War-era Col. Basil Turchin. His
or Loyalist Democrats, a biracial alternative to the
died April 19, 2016. She also attended Mississippi
published works included a 2009 book, Lincoln’s
segregationist Regular Democrats and the all-black
State College for Women, now Mississippi Uni-
Gettysburg Address: Echoes of the Bible and Book
Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party. The Loyal-
versity for Women. She and her husband enjoyed
of Common Prayer.
ist Democrats successfully challenged the credentials of the Regular Mississippi Democrats at the
traveling together. She also enjoyed playing bridge
Charles Harris Robinette Jr., B.S. 1962, of
Democratic National Convention of 1968 and were
Natchez, died Oct. 16, 2016. He worked for Leflore
seated in their stead, and Derian was elected as
Barbara Helen Himel Mullins, B.A. 1961, of
Economic Association, the University of Missis-
one of Mississippi’s delegates. For the next eight
Laurel, died August 12, 2016. She was a “stay-at-
sippi Medical Center, and Tandy Corporation. He
years, the Loyalist faction was recognized as the le-
home” mom to her children, worked a part-time
was co-owner of Metalcraft, Inc., owned a number
gitimate Democratic Party in Mississippi until the
job through the years as a bridal and wedding
of electronics stores, and worked as an investigative
Loyalists and Regulars united in 1976. During the
consultant for House of Cachet and Roberts, and
auditor for the Mississippi Office of State Auditor.
1976 U.S. presidential election, Derian was deputy
and golf.
director of the Carter-Mondale campaign. After
was an active member of First United Methodist Church of Laurel. She was a Life member of both
Dr. Richard Dale Caldwell, B.S. 1963, of Palm
Carter won, he nominated her to be coordinator
the Junior Auxiliary of Laurel and the Laurel Arts
Harbor, Fla., died on April 12, 2015. He attended
for human rights and humanitarian affairs but he
League, and served on Laurel Little Theater’s
graduate school at the University of Alabama,
changed that title to assistant secretary of state
board of directors. She was a docent at the Lauren
where he earned a master’s of science in 1965 and
for human rights and humanitarian affairs. She
Rogers Museum of Art and a member of the Little
a doctor of philosophy in 1969 with a degree in
served in that post until 1981, working to improve
Garden Club of Laurel.
biology, specializing in ichthyology and systemat-
U.S. foreign policy coordination on humanitarian
ics. Throughout his career as a college professor,
issues such as human rights, refugees, and prison-
Mildred D. Robinson, Class of 1961, of Ocean
environmental consultant, and fisheries scientist,
ers of war.
Springs, died Sept. 26, 2016. She taught elementary
he shared his fascination and love of the natural
school in Gulfport and kindergarten at Big Ridge
world with all who would listen.
Barbara Lefeve McCleese, B.A. 1964, of Jackson, died Nov. 9, 2016. She retired as a representa-
Baptist Church.
Ann Guidroz Marion, B.S. 1963, of Natchez,
tive for the Social Security Administration. She
Jack Ryan, B.A. 1961, of Pensacola, Fla., Class of
died March 11, 2016. She received her master’s of
was a member of St. Stephen’s Anglican Church,
1961, died Aug. 25, 2016. His career began in New
science and specialist degrees in school psychology
where she was a member of the Daughters of the
York City in the 1960s when he became a publicist
from the University of Southern Mississippi.
Holy Cross. She served as a volunteer for the Salvation Army, CASA, Cub Scouts, and Hospice
for Ringling Bros. Barnum and Bailey Circus, eventually becoming director of national public-
Steve Meisburg , B.A. 1963, of Tallahassee, Fla.,
ity. In 2011 he was inducted into the International
died July 1, 2016. He graduated from Lexington
Circus Hall of Fame. He created the iconic phrase
Theological Seminary in 1965 and that same year
Anna Claire Gourlay, Class of 1966, of Oxford,
“May All Your Days Be Circus Days” and he
marched with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. from
died July 14, 2016. She was a watercolor artist, a
continued to host a Facebook page with the same
Selma to Montgomery, Ala. He went on to become
member of the Gaddis Group of Watercolor Artists
name until his death. In the 1970s Ryan moved to
Tallahassee’s second-longest serving city com-
in Jackson, a homemaker, and an Ole Miss fan.
Los Angeles where he charted a second career as
missioner, holding office from 1987 to 2003, and
director of marketing & public relations at Magic
serving as mayor in 1990. In the 1970s, he and Tal-
Edward P. Schmidt Jr., Class of 1966, of Hazle-
Mountain and later as a PR consultant, editor, and
lahassee musician John Paul Walters formed the
hurst, died June 6, 2016. He served in the United
writer. In 1983, while providing advice and counsel
folk duo Meisburg and Walters, which produced
States Navy. He has lived in Hazlehurst for 49
to family entertainment venues and PR firms, he
three albums for Casablanca Records.
years and worked for Hardy Wilson Hospital and
Ministries.
Copiah Clinic.
began teaching public relations at the USC Annenberg School for Communication. He retired in
Stephen Cranford, B.A. 1964, of Tulsa, Okla.,
2003 but continued to freelance and to present his
died Dec. 3, 2016. He was a graduate of Lexington
Mary Anderson, Class of 1967, of Jackson, died
seminar, “The Art & Craft of Public Relations Writ-
Theological Seminary and served as a pastor and
Aug. 30, 2016. She graduated from Louisiana State
ing,” all over the country.
as a denominational executive for the Christian
University with a B.A. in psychology in 1967 and
46
www.millsaps.edu
{IN MEMORIAM}
Trustee worked for a number of years as a reservations
Richard Duncan McRae, of Jackson, a life trustee
agent for Delta Airlines.
who received an honorary degree from Millsaps College in 1991, died Sept. 2, 2016. After being
Daniel Deupree McKee II, B.A. 1967, of Madison,
educated in the Jackson Public School system,
died Jan. 4, 2017. He earned his master of divinity
he graduated from the University of Mississippi.
and doctor of ministry from The School of Theol-
A childhood illness disqualified him for military
ogy at the University of the South. McKee’s first
service, so he volunteered for the American Red
church was St. Thomas Episcopal Church and All
Cross and served as a field officer in the European
Saints Episcopal Church in Inverness, where he
Theater in World War II.
met his wife of 43 years, Diane. He served Episcopal churches in Mississippi in Jackson and Lexington,
After returning from war service, McRae met a
and then in Newport, Ark. He served as canon to
beautiful young lady who wished him “Happy Birth-
the ordinary for the Diocese of Arkansas, a position
day” at a Valentine’s Day party. Just four months
he served for nine years and later as sub dean at
later, on June 25, 1946, he married the former Selby
Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Little Rock, Ark.
Watkins (a 1946 graduate of Millsaps) at Galloway Memorial Methodist Church, where they were both
James Edgar “Sandy” Sandusky, B.A. 1967, of Meridian, died April 26, 2016. He received a
devoted lifelong members. After World War II, Richard McRae and his brother, Samuel P. McRae, Jr., took over the reins of
law degree from the University of Mississippi. He
their father’s business, McRae’s Department Store, which was established in 1902 in Jackson. The
practiced law in Meridian from 1970 until 2016
brothers recognized early the coming postwar growth of Jackson and expanded their business, first
and served for years as a commissioner for Weems
in the downtown location and later in Jackson’s suburban shopping centers of Meadowbrook Mart
Community Mental Health.
and Westland Plaza.
Lana Carol Weeks, B.A. 1967, of New Orleans,
McRae’s throughout Mississippi. He also opened stores in Florida, Alabama, and Louisiana and
died Dec. 1, 2016. She earned a master’s degree in
purchased the Pizitz department store chain in Alabama in 1988, an acquisition that dramatically
social work from Louisiana State University and
expanded the business. Mr. McRae was an innovator and managed his company as though it were a
worked for many years in Child Protective Services
larger business. Some of the innovations in retailing that Mr. McRae championed were the early use
for the State of Louisiana. She was a pianist,
of credit cards, computerized cash registers, liberal return policies, toll-free ordering, in-house video
vocalist, and long-time member of the Symphony
training facilities, and free gift wrap. He also built a state-of-the art distribution facility in Jackson.
Chorus of New Orleans.
Steve Moore, B.A. 1968, of Meridian, died Aug 23, 1916. He received a fellowship to Duke University for graduate school. He earned his law degree
During the ensuing decades of the 1960s until the 1990s, Mr. McRae oversaw the expansion of
Mr. McRae never lost sight of his commitment to run his business like he lived his life—by the Golden Rule. He made ownership of the company available to key executives and created a profitsharing plan for all eligible associates. At the time the company was sold in 1996, McRae’s Department Stores had become one of the largest independent department store chains in America. Mr. McRae was very involved in the business, cultural, and social life of Jackson. During his
from the University of Mississippi and worked
lifetime, he served as a member of the Boards of Directors of Deposit Guaranty Corp., Deposit
as trust officer at First National Bank of Jackson
Guaranty National Bank, Mississippi Power and Light Company, and The Standard Life Insurance
before returning to Meridian, where he served as
Company. He served as a director and president of the Jackson Chamber of Commerce and was a
senior vice president and trust officer of Merchant
former director of The National Retail Merchants Association and the Mississippi Retail Merchants
and Farmers Bank of Meridian, then held the
Association, which named him its first Retailer of the Year in 1966. He was inducted into the Mis-
same positions at Bank of Meridian. He retired as
sissippi Business Hall of Fame in 1992.
a financial planner at Revels Securities and Smith Barney.
Linda Kay Townes, B.A. 1971, of Summit, died
At Galloway United Methodist Church, he was a member of the Administrative Board and Board of Trustees. He and Selby, who enjoyed its traditions of beautiful music and inspiring preaching, gave the organ for the sanctuary. Among the many other boards on which he served were the Mississippi Methodist Children’s
Oct. 18, 2016. She worked as a news reporter for
Home, Mississippi Children’s Home Society, and the Metropolitan Jackson Boys and Girls Clubs.
the Enterprise-Journal in McComb and later was
He was also a former member of the Exchange Club and former president of the Mississippi Sym-
a Mississippi State Hospital licensed social work
phony Orchestra.
coordinator for care of the homeless and displaced persons in the Jackson area.
James Mallard Holston, B.A. 1972, of Laurel,
In 1965, Mr. McRae established what is now known as the Selby and Richard McRae Foundation. Through its generosity and stewardship, the foundation has supported scores of arts, educational, and social service organizations of central Mississippi. At Millsaps, Mr. McRae and his family have been generous benefactors for many years, includ-
died June 24 2016. He earned an M.D. from the
ing the establishment of the Selby and Richard D. McRae Endowed Scholarship and the Selby and
University of Mississippi School of Medicine in
Richard D. McRae Chair of Business Administration in the Else School of Management. Most
1976 and an M.B.A. from Auburn University in
recently, the McRae Foundation made the lead gift to begin the transformative renovation of
2004. He practiced pediatrics in Laurel for 30 years
the Christian Center. Richard McRae’s children, Richard McRae Jr., Susan McRae Shanor, and Vaughn McRae, continue their family’s support of the College through the foundation. Millsaps Magazine Winter 2017
47
{IN MEMORIAM}
and served as vice president and chief quality offi-
Mississippi Medical Center where he served as an
cer at South Central Regional Medical Center from
orthopedic surgeon and taught medical students
2004 until 2016.
and residents until his retirement in 1995.
Faculty Donald E. Faulkner, B.S. 1961, of Madison, died June 23, 2016. He attended University of Rochester
Brad A. Alford, B.A. 1976, of Greentown, Pa.,
Donald Patrick Howell, Class of 1990, of Hat-
under an Atomic Energy Commission Special Fel-
died June 21, 2016. A professor of psychology at
tiesburg, died May 7, 2016. He graduated from the
lowship, obtaining a M.S. in radiation biology in
The University of Scranton for 23 years, Alford
University of Southern Mississippi. He earned a
1962. Faulkner was a math and physics instructor
contributed empirical, theoretical, and meta-
master’s degree in computer science. He was em-
at H.V. Cooper High School in Vicksburg from 1962
theoretical research on behaviorism and cognitive
ployed at Forrest General Hospital.
to 1965. He taught at Millsaps from 1965 to 1971 and Hinds Community College from 1971 to 1999.
therapy. He completed his doctorate in clinical psychology from the University of Mississippi, and
Thomas Oren Metcalfe III, B.L.S. 1994, of
He taught at Millsaps during summer sessions
a postdoctoral fellowship at the Center for Cogni-
Madison, died Dec. 6, 2016. He was the owner of
from 1971 to 1989.
tive Therapy, University of Pennsylvania School of
Industrial Steam Cleaners in Jackson and South-
Medicine. He published several books and numer-
east Powerwash in Madison.
Lucy Webb Millsaps, emerita associate professor of art, of Madison, died May 3, 2016. A gradu-
ous articles in the top psychotherapy journals.
Elizabeth Ann Trevathan Johnson, Class
ate of Sophie Newcomb at Tulane University and
Deirdre McCrory Henry, B.A. 1980, of Jackson,
of 1994, of Vernon, Ala., died June 22, 2016. She
the Rhode Island School of Design, she taught at
died Sept. 24, 2016. She earned a J. D. from the
grew up in Starkville and graduated from Starkville
All Saints School in Vicksburg and at Delta State
University of Mississippi School of Law and prac-
High School.
University in Cleveland and other colleges. Her career at Millsaps College in the Art Department
ticed law in Mississippi for 26 years.
James Hand Carter, M.B.A. 1997, of Ridgeland
began in 1969 and she retired in 1999. Some of her
James Gaillard Walker Jr., B.S. 1981, of Can-
died Oct. 19, 2016.He also earned a geology degree
many landscape paintings are archived in the Mis-
ton, died No. 22, 2016. He obtained his master’s
from Louisiana Tech University and an account-
sissippi Museum of Art. She had numerous shows
degree in combined sciences from Mississippi
ing degree from Mississippi College. He became a
throughout the Southeast and was the author of A
College. Walker taught engineering and robotics at
certified public accountant.
Study of Art Taught in the General Education of the Junior Colleges in Mississippi 1965-1966.
Madison Career & Technical Center.
Richard Christian “Chris” Miller, B.B.A. Elizabeth Grace Nichols Gittins, Class of
1997, of Fairhope, Ala., died May 31, 2016. He was
1985, of Jackson, died Oct. 23, 2016. After college,
also a graduate of the University of Alabama and
she interned for Sen. Thad Cochran in Washing-
received a master’s degree at Auburn University.
ton, D.C. She played a role at the 1988 Republican
He was training for the Grand Man Triathalon and
presidential convention in New Orleans and the
was an avid sportsman.
inauguration of President George H.W. Bush. She received appointments to the Department
Kirbi Herring , B.B.A. 2005, of Harvey, La., died
of Housing and Urban Development, the Peace
July 30, 2016. She was previously employed by
Corps, and the USDA.
Universal Music Group in Bentonville, Ark., where she was able to enjoy her passion for music.
Dr. Luther Calvin Fisher III, B.A.1986, of Nashville, died July 1, 2016. He attended Emory
Quinn Geoffrey Lemieux , B.S. 2013, of New
University for three years before being accepted to
Iberia, La., died June 11, 2016. He looked forward
Tulane University Medical School where he earned
to the study, practice, and service of medicine. He
his medical degree in 1960. Fisher practiced
loved music, fraternity life, spending time at the
medicine for 35 years and lived with his family in
family camp at Toledo Bend, and his dog Ziva.
many places including Jackson, Houston, Texas, Pensacola, Fla., New Orleans, and Taos, New Mex-
Molly Ellis Tyner Boland , B.S. 2014, died Aug.
ico. During the Vietnam War, he served in the U.S.
25, 2016. After graduation she was accepted into
Army at Fort Gordon, Ga. From 1968-1971, he lived
the Ph.D. program in immunology at The Univer-
in Ethiopia with his family and worked as a medi-
sity of Alabama-Birmingham. She had a desire to
cal missionary providing medical care, primarily
see research done that would assist patients and
reconstructive surgery, for leprosy patients. After
families with diseases like Juvenile Rheumatoid
his return from Ethiopia, he practiced medicine
Arthritis and Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocy-
for three years in Pensacola, before moving to
tosis, the disease that took her sister’s life. She
Houston, where he worked in a free clinic and was
coached softball first with the Mississippi Blast
very involved in his church. In 1977, Fisher was
tournament ball team in Clinton and later with the
recruited to join the faculty at the University of
Twisters in Birmingham.
48
www.millsaps.edu
Staff Irene Whisenant Story, of Charlotte, N.C., died July 23, 2016. She worked in the registrar’s office at Millsaps from 1980 until 1991.
These submissions for In Memoriam reflect those received between April 1, 2016 and January 1, 2017. For more information, contact Nell Luter Floyd at 601-974-1089 or floydnl@millsaps.edu.
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NOAH BARBIERI | MAJOR: ECONOMICS, MATH, AND PHILOSOPHY EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES: PHI ETA SIGMA, MOCK TRIAL, ACADEMIC BOWL, AND SBA PRESIDENT
Throughout his high school career Noah Barbieri planned to go to Ole Miss for college. Then he started thinking about where he could be most successful—and where he belonged. Where he could have a strong academic experience but also be involved in and do a lot of different things. That led him to Millsaps —and he hasn’t looked back. As a junior triple major in philosophy, economics, and mathematics, he serves as SBA President and a member of the nationally competitive Mock Trial team. Noah enjoys the Leggett Living Room on campus because it’s where students gather to study, meet new people, interact, and have fun. Noah says, “The faculty encourage students to explore all routes of thinking, which has greatly helped me further understand the society and world I live in today. I know if I work hard here, I can get into a top law school or graduate school.” NOAH BELONGS AT MILLSAPS.